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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25568962">Chili Dogs and Tears Work A Little Too Well Together, Huh?</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Str4wberrySugar/pseuds/Str4wberrySugar'>Str4wberrySugar</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>"enemies" more like but still, Awkward Crush, Cuddling &amp; Snuggling, Denial of Feelings, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Everyone Is Gay, First Kiss, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, I started writing this like 5 months ago and its long and cringy as fuck, I'm so sorry in advance please don't kill me, Implied Anxiety, M/M, Mentions of SA2, Nightmares, Not Canon Compliant, Rouge just wants to be a supportive friend, Sexuality Crisis, Shadow is an Edgelord TM, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Sonic is a clueless idiot, everything is pure cause this is a christian minecraft server, uuuuh maybe i'll add more tags as I go, you absolute cretin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-04-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 02:14:36</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>50,482</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25568962</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Str4wberrySugar/pseuds/Str4wberrySugar</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Sonic hasn't seen or heard from his least favorite hedgehog in weeks, not that he's really complaining. </p><p>When a sudden G.U.N mission (and a lot of bribery) forces him to work together with Shadow, will he be able to suck it up and discover a little more about himself and their friendship, or will he just get a right hook to the face?</p><p>Or maybe something even more...?</p><p>In other words, Sonic and Shadow are forced to go on a gay adventure together, and with the help of their friends are forced to face a couple challenges in their comradeship. Filled with lots of shittily written fluff and a little bit of angst &lt;3 </p><p>Enjoy!</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Shadow the Hedgehog/Sonic the Hedgehog</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>74</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>225</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The Hero Of Mobius Really Shouldn't Take Bribes From CIA Agents...</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Sonic looked blankly at the disheveled man sitting across from him on the other side of the desk. The soft lights that filtered in through the hallway he had passed through showing the wrinkles on his tired face. The smell of stale coffee hung in the air, wafting through the musty room. The hero felt his foot nervously bouncing up and down, anxious to know what was so urgently needed from the secret service.</p><p>He always felt a bit queasy when he had to go to the G.U.N headquarters, maybe it was the cement walls or the body guards in full swat gear that were waiting outside nearly every door, but he hated going in there. The hedgehog’s eyes flicked from wall to wall, waiting for something to break the uncomfortable silence.</p><p>Finally, the man sighed and looked at his feet,“Now Sonic, I know that you’re a busy man, and don’t like to waste time, so I’ll get right to the point- G.U.N needs you on a mission.”</p><p>A gleam shone in the hedgehog’s eye as he broke out into a grin.</p><p>“Oh? What kind of mission?”</p><p>The middle aged man stood a little straighter, “You and another member of G.U.N will be going on an expedition to see if Eggman is planning something sinister on the other side of city-” he passed a brown folder to Sonic-” It may take a few weeks, nothing to extreme, but it may be a bit of a challenge,”</p><p>Sonic stood up and leaned closer to the desk, “Sounds easy enough! This’ll be done in no time! Can I ask who else is doing this?” The blue hedgehog hadn’t been on an adventure in quite some time, and honestly, he had been getting awfully bored without any excitement.</p><p>The GUN director’s stern expression didn’t change, despite Sonic’s eagerness.</p><p>“Alright then, I’m glad you agreed.” He said ignoring the hero’s question.</p><p>Sonic sighed and began to walk towards the door. He’d done a few odd jobs for G.U.N, mostly alone, but they had always given him more instructions after a few days of asking.</p><p>I’ll inform Shadow shortly,”</p><p>Sonic stopped dead in his tracks as his hands fell to his side,</p><p>“Wait-what??! Shadow?” The shorter hedgehog exclaimed, his eyebrows furrowing. “Nope! No way, absolutely not! I am not dealing with that guy ever-”</p><p>“Sonic- please,” the Director cut him of mid complaint, “I understand the two of you have not been on the...best of terms,”</p><p>“That’s probably a bit of an understatement.” the blur dead panned, and took a deep breath.</p><p>“Well, this sure was a lot of fun talking to you mister, but I think I have to pass,” the hedgehog pushed the door leading out open.</p><p>“We are prepared to reward you for your cooperation, Sonic” The man said with a sly grin.<br/>He turned back to face the Director, “Sorry bud, but I don’t really take bribes from secret service officers, so I think I’ll just get go-”</p><p>“Does a lifetime supply of chili dogs sound fair to you, Sonic? Because I’m sure we could figure out something that will please you...” The man in the suit persisted. “Of course, Rouge will be in contact with both of you to ensure there’s no fighting, if that makes things a little easier…”</p><p>Sonic paused and looked at the floor, and then back at the man. This was a terrible idea- one of the worst he’d ever heard, but...Chili dogs…. Not only that, but Sonic enjoyed Rouge’s company, maybe it wouldn’t be all bad, he hadn’t been to the other side of the city in quite some time- Nope! No way!!! He couldn’t actually be considering this idea, could he?</p><p>Honestly, Sonic didn’t even dislike Shadow all that much. But it was clear that his rival certainly didn’t share the same views. He was condescending and sometimes outright aggressive, though the blue hedgehog wasn’t exactly sure what caused him to lash out, he didn’t feel like putting up with it anymore than he had to.</p><p>But, Sonic <em>really</em> could use something to do… and chili dogs sounded awfully good right now...</p><p>He groaned and looked back at the Director- “You’re going to need a shit ton of chili dogs, dude.”</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p><em>“</em>You can’t be serious,” Shadow began, facing a similar conversation than the one that was happening a few rooms down. He looked over at Rouge, “He’s not serious, right? I don’t actually have to do this??”</p><p>Rouge gave him a sad smile, “Yes hon, i’m pretty sure he is.” She let out a sigh, and looked back at the officer.</p><p>Shadow also turned back and furrowed his eyebrows,”You know we’ve tried to kill each other like six times, right?”</p><p>“Yes.”</p><p>“And we fight constantly.”</p><p>“Also yes.”</p><p>“And the last time I spoke to him he threatened to shatter my kneecaps?”</p><p>“Uh huh.”</p><p>“And you’re <em>still</em> making me do this?”</p><p>“I have a feeling you know the answer to that question, Shadow.”</p><p>He groaned and slumped back in his chair. Of all the terrible missions and people he’d had to work with since joining G.U.N, this was going to be the worst-by far.</p><p>The man stood up, and flicked a file over to Rouge, “Well, I understand this might be difficult for you, Shadow, but I think you’ll get through it. Rouge’ll tell you what you need to do, so I’ll be heading off” He walked over to the door and looked back at the depressed hedgie in the chair-</p><p>“And Shadow, remember my offer. It’s not a required transfer, but if you feel up for it we could use your assistance.” He handed Shadow a file full of documents before the door clicked behind him.</p><p>Shadow sighed as his eyes skimmed through the papers, his mood turned sour.</p><p>Rouge walked over to try and comfort her friend,“I know, I know, please don’t get mad at me for not warning you enough,” she said putting a hand on Shadow’s shoulder.</p><p>“I mean, you told me I wasn’t going to like it but…”</p><p>The hedgehog looked at his hands, more tired than anything else. As much as we wanted to protest, he knew there was no point trying to fight it. He’d tried before, and it never worked out-no matter how terrible a mission might be.</p><p>“Maybe it’s for the best,” Rouge continued, “You haven’t seen him in a while, it’ll be good to catch up! He’ll probably want to see you anyway if you do plan on going away for three years...”</p><p>Shadow snorted and stood up, “Yeah right, when has that ever been the case? Anyway, I... haven’t made up my mind about it just yet.”</p><p>The white bat smiled, at least he wasn’t moping as much as she’d expected.</p><p>“Well, either way I’ll certainly miss your help.” She put a hand on his head.</p><p>“It’ll be okay, honey. You’ll see. I think you both have some conversations that need to take place anyway.”</p><p>He sighed and looked at his feet.</p><p>“I suppose.”</p><p>“That’s the spirit, Shadow! And if he really does try anything stupid I’ll come down myself and give him a talking to!”</p><p>They smiled at each other for a moment before the hedgehog stretched his arms and stood up.</p><p>“I don’t want to have to take him to the hospital or anything.”</p><p>“Booo. What a party pooper.” She winked and started pulling him through the door. “You haven’t eaten right? Let’s go grab some food and I’ll tell ya some more info. Plus, I saw this really cute girl at one of the jewelry stores I was in today!”</p><p>Rouge continued chattering as she pulled them out of the G.U.N headquarters, and off into the cool air outside.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Shadow the Hedgehog is NOT A Fan Of Slowpokes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The day Shadow's been dreading has finally arrived! But where on Mobius has Sonic gone? He was supposed to get here three hours ago!</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p><p>"Sonic!" </p><p>He mumbled incoherently into his mattress, wrapping the pillow over his head closer around his ears. </p><p> </p><p>"SONIC!" </p><p> </p><p>“Ah?!? What??! HuH?!” Sonic jolted upright from his bed, nearly falling off in the process. “Tails! Why do you always do that?! It’s so early too...” The hero complained blearily as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. </p><p> </p><p>His younger brother snorted and helped him off of the floor, mumbling something under his breath. “What do you mean early? It’s nearly 2 pm!” He replied as he threw some of Sonic’s blankets back on the bed. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic looked around his room, grumbling. The familiar posters and pictures haphazardly stuck to the walls, the pile of shoes and clothes that were shoved into corners. <em> I feel like I have to do something today... </em> Tails looked up at him, questioning. </p><p> </p><p>Then it hit him. ”Oh crap i forgot!” Sonic exclaimed as he scrambled up from his seat. Quickly, he began pacing around the room, shoving clothes into his worn out backpack. </p><p> </p><p>It had been six days since the conversation that took place at G.U.N’s Headquarters, and needless to say, he had not prepared in the slightest. </p><p> </p><p>Tails was surprised to see him completely wake up so quickly, and cocked his head, </p><p>“Forgot what?”  </p><p> </p><p>“Ih fohgoht that thingh I hadh to do wihf shadow.” Sonic said as he shoved his toothbrush in his mouth. </p><p> </p><p>The fox furrowed his eyebrows, “Oh... you’re still planning on doing that?” he questioned as Sonic spit foam into the sink, the hedgehog wiped an arm across his face and nodded.</p><p> </p><p>“Yup! I’ll do pretty much anything for a chili dog at this point- even if it means having to spend time with a big grouch like him.” He snorted at his own joke, before looking over at the concerned Tails. </p><p> </p><p>“I don’t know about this Sonic… it seems kind of… dangerous.” The orange fox murmured, his tails drooped slightly. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic turned his head, he didn’t see his brother get this worried often, and the <em> last </em> thing he wanted was for him to feel that way. He walked over and put a reassuring hand on Tails’ shoulder. </p><p> </p><p>“It’ll be fine! I promise, I can take care of myself! And besides- Rouge will still be monitoring us or something like that, so even if he <em> does </em>try something- I’ll be ok! What could go wrong?” </p><p> </p><p>Tails tried to give his friend a smile, but this still seemed like a terrible idea. </p><p> </p><p>“...yeah…” He said under his breath. </p><p> </p><p>Needless to say, Sonic’s pep talk did <em>not</em> leave him very reassured. </p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>“Sonic- there are so many things that could go wrong.” The pink haired girl remarked in exasperation, setting a tea cup on the kitchen table. </p><p> </p><p>The other hedgehog groaned and put his head in his arms, pouting. A few hours after his conversation with Tails, the hero had decided to invite Amy over in a desperate attempt to assure his brother that he <em> wasn’t </em> walking directly into a death trap, but clearly it had not panned out as he had hoped.</p><p> </p><p>He looked around the small kitchen and dragged a finger across the light wood in front of him with a frown. The white tiles of the walls gleamed in the afternoon sun. It was surprisingly clean compared to the rest of the house, mostly because neither he or Tails could cook very well- most of the time it ended with fire extinguishers. Amy was the only one who used it, mostly for making tea and cookies when she came over to visit. </p><p> </p><p>“Don’t be such a stick in the mud! I already told you it’ll be fine! I’ve beat Eggman a million times, so why should this time be any different?” Sonic whined. </p><p> </p><p>Amy and Tails gave each other a slightly worried look. The pink hedgehog then sighed as she turned back to fill up another cup.</p><p> </p><p>“It’s not that we don’t trust <em> you </em> dummy. It’s just, you and Shadow haven’t been getting along very well, and... what if something <em> did </em>happen? He’s done dangerous things in the past, might I remind you that he nearly blew up the Earth once? How do we know he’s not going to try something like that again? And the last few times we’ve talked to him? Especially if Rouge isn’t there in person… it just seems kind of risky.” Sonic’s friend set another cup in front of him and gave him a concerned look. </p><p> </p><p>The hero stood up and grinned back.</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, but it wouldn’t be an adventure if there wasn’t any risk to it! And besides, it’s true he’s been a bit… moodier recently, but Shads and I have fought old Egghead together in the past and worked out ok, so this time I’m sure it won’t be any different!” He exclaimed, ruffling the top of Tails’ head.</p><p> </p><p>At this point it was clear that Sonic was determined to go, no matter what concerns his friends might have. </p><p> </p><p>The fox raised his eyebrows in doubt at that comment. “I’m not exactly sure “<em> moody” </em> would be the best way to put it…” Was he <em> really </em> just going to brush off all of the stuff that Shadow had said to them in the past? He sighed in annoyance, but he knew both of them had already lost this argument. <em> Sonic was practically bouncing off the walls as is, so maybe getting out of the house will do him so good. If he doesn’t get stabbed full of chaos spears before then… </em> He cringed at the thought. </p><p> </p><p>“Okay, okay. If you say so…” Tails uneasily said. “I mean, I trust you to use your best judgement on this one, Sonic. If anything happens, <em>promise </em>me you’ll tell us? Or at least Rouge?” </p><p> </p><p>Amy nodded vigorously at the two of them. “Oh! And make sure you take your phone with you!” She added. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic snorted and took a swig of his own cup of lukewarm and now slightly gross tea. “Pfft, you guys worry too much.” He teased. </p><p> </p><p>“I think we worry a good amount, considering.” Amy remarked with an eye roll as she leaned up against the counter behind her.</p><p> </p><p>Sonic smiled at his friends. It was nice to know they cared about his well being so much, even if it meant he had to take his crummy phone with him everywhere now. He was grateful for having such great people in his life. But he really didn’t understand why the two of them seemed so uneasy around Shadow. It was true that out of all of them, Sonic certainly had spent the most time with the humorless agent, but it still felt a bit weird that they were convinced he was a <em> threat. </em></p><p> </p><p>Even if he’d been acting a little off the last few times, Shadow wouldn’t do something like that. He was an annoyance sure, but he wasn’t <em>dangerous.</em></p><p> </p><p>He yawned and stretched his arms over his head.</p><p> </p><p>“Well, I should probably finish packing before I forget. Anyone care to join me?” Sonic questioned. </p><p> </p><p>Amy looked at him bewildered. “You haven’t even finished packing?! What happened to being prepared?!!” She squawked as the three made their way out of the kitchen. </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Shadow and Rouge sat quietly in the lobby of G.U.N’s headquarters waiting for Sonic. Finally, the day he had been dreading had arrived, but the <em> thing </em> he had been dreading was no where around. It was nearly an hour over the time they had agreed to meet, and the ebony hedgehog was getting a bit fed up. Being tired and full of anxious energy from the 4 cups of coffee he had drank, the dark hero was <em> not </em> really in the mood to wait around. </p><p> </p><p>“We should wait a little bit longer.” Rouge said softly as she scrolled through her phone. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow crossed his arms impatiently. “I haven’t even done anything yet.”</p><p> </p><p>“Don’t have to, sweetie” the white bat nudged up against him with her elbow- “You have that gleam in your eye. Five more minutes, okay? Then we can ask what’s going on.”</p><p> </p><p>He pulled his legs into the chair and rested his head onto his knees, “Fine. But in exactly five minutes I’m going over there and dragging his ass out one way or another.” </p><p> </p><p>“OoOoh, kinky.”</p><p> </p><p>“I’ll kill you.”</p><p> </p><p>Rouge snorted and pulled out her phone again, ignoring the fuming glare that was burning holes into the side of her head. “Alright, alright, just don’t do anything <em> too </em> hasty.”</p><p> </p><p>Despite his best efforts, Shadow couldn’t help but stare at the clock. It was either that, or look at the equally boring brown walls that covered the room. Looking around at the familiar bland decor, and the scratchy chairs that lined the walls, the hedgehog realized that it looked more like a dentist office rather than a top secret military base. He fidgeted in annoyance. For what seemed like the thousandth time, he made a silent list of everything pissing him off. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> I hate the mornings, </em>
</p><p>
  <em> I hate G.U.N, </em>
</p><p>
  <em> I hate that stupid hedgehog, </em>
</p><p>
  <em> I hate the director, </em>
</p><p>
  <em> I hate this room, </em>
</p><p>
  <em> I hate Roug- well no, but I still hate her jokes. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>He grumbled to himself, though it wasn’t anymore than mild complaints. He refused to address what was <em> really </em>bothering him, though he wasn’t doing a very good job of it, that queasy feeling in his gut that refused to go away...</p><p> </p><p>Time seemed to move insufferably slow, the only noise coming from the occasional ticking from the clock, or the receptionist’s typing from the front of the room. But eventually, five minutes passed. </p><p> </p><p>“Alright, that's it. I’m going to get him. If he’s not in that crappy shed he calls a house then I’m leaving without him.” Shadow spoke, breaking the silence. </p><p> </p><p>Rouge stretched and finally nodded in agreement. “Blue’s way too late. Do you think he bailed on us?” </p><p> </p><p>Shadow fumbled around his quills, before pulling out a chaos emerald. “We’re about to find out. I’ll text when I know what's happening.” </p><p> </p><p>“Safe travels, Shads.” Rouge said sarcastically. </p><p> </p><p>He gave a nod of agreement, despite the fact that she was just joking. It was still amusing, knowing that she was told to pretty much keep an eye on the two of them at all times to make sure they didn’t kill each other. Then, the hedgehog lifted the glittering jewel above his head. </p><p> </p><p>“And Shadow? Don’t worry too much. I have faith that you’ll both make through in one piece.” <em> Or at least… I hope.... </em>She thought uneasily.</p><p> </p><p>“Chaos control!” He shouted. </p><p> </p><p>And with a blinding flash of light that filled the room, he was gone.</p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>Shadow stood in front of the building, and felt himself hesitate. The short and battered house had <em> certainly </em> seen better days. Light blue paint peeling from the sides of the home, bleached from the sun, bricks and shingles littered the front yard, which Shadow assumed was from the equally banged up roof. </p><p> </p><p>Carefully stepping through the wild flowers and junk, the agent made his way to the front door. The wood creaked and groaned as he walked up the old wooden stairs.</p><p> </p><p> He could hear people talking inside, so even if Sonic wasn’t in, one of them would probably know where he was. But still… it felt wrong just to show up at his house, <em> especially </em>since the last time he was here he’d left with a black eye. He shifted the weight of his backpack from on shoulder to another before taking a deep breath and knocking. </p><p> </p><p>Oof, that probably sounded a lot more forceful than he had meant it to. </p><p> </p><p>Before Shadow had time to contemplate whether or not he had knocked correctly, the door was shoved open to reveal the fox boy. </p><p> </p><p>“Hia! What can I do for yo- oh. Uh… hi, Shadow.”  He trailed off with a gulp, looking down at his hands. The two tailed fox was obviously uneasy about him being here, which Shadow could understand, though the obvious change in tone and atmosphere was enough to make anyone uncomfortable. So, he did what he did best- narrowed his eyes at him and glared. Surprisingly enough, it didn’t make the awkward silence any better.</p><p> </p><p>“Just a sec! I’ll be there in a minute!” Shadow could hear Sonic rushing around, though the noise was a bit muffled, it sounded like he was with someone else also. </p><p> </p><p>Tails stepped from one foot to the other. “So… um… you want to wait inside? This might take a few minutes.” </p><p> </p><p>Sun streamed in through the dusty windows, showing the cluttered contents of the house. Shadow peered around the corner, the hallway leading to a small kitchen, the table covered in dishes and tea cups. </p><p> </p><p>The hedgehog followed Tails into the house,  he noticed it was cramped. Not some big fancy house like you might expect from someone as famous as Sonic, but seemed well used. At least judging by the pizza boxes and mechanical parts that were scattered on nearly every table. Comic books and video game consoles were piled in front of a dingy tv which looked to be nearly older than Sonic. Along with the occasional nick nacks and the half dead succulents sitting by the window. His ear twitched as he heard more racket from upstairs. </p><p>“I told you Amy! Everything’s gonna be fine! And you’ve spent nearly two days making me pack so I’m pretty sure that’s fine too!” Sonic said, desperately trying to calm down his pink friend. </p><p> </p><p>“That doesn’t mean anything if you sleep through half the day! Did you still have your phone? Charger? A jacket in case it gets cold?” Amy insisted as she attempted to shove more items into Sonic’s already full bag. </p><p> </p><p>“Amy, I think he’ll be fine without bringing the entire house along with him.” Tails tried to reassure his friend as he walked over to help. </p><p> </p><p>The pink girl hesitated at the noise and gave a soft smile up at the orange fox.“Yeah... you’re probably right, Tails.” Amy sighed. “But I just want to make sure you’re safe.” She said, a bit softer. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic smiled and hugged his two friends. “Awww, you’re too nice to me. But I think that I have to get going. I’m already like, two hours late.” </p><p> </p><p>Shadow looked at his feet with a twinge in his gut, feeling out of place when such a mushy and sappy moment was happening a few feet in front of him. He just wanted to get going at this point. Staying in Sonic’s house made him feel weird. He decided it would probably be best if he waited outside. </p><p> </p><p>“Oh! And one more thing!” Amy said as Sonic headed towards the door, “I’m heading back to my place in Station Square in a couple days, so if you need anything, just text me beforehand, alright?” </p><p>Sonic smiled and put on his backpack. “Okay, okay, will do.” He smiled at Tails and Amy. </p><p> </p><p>“Alright! I think I have to go now, so take care, you two! Don’t do anything too stupid.” Sonic said as he messed up the top of Tail’s head. </p><p> </p><p>The agent was feeling more and more uneasy, a mixture of guilt and regret pooling in his stomach. He was almost positive that as soon as they were alone he was going to get a nasty bruise around his eye again. After a while, Sonic came out of the door and smirked up at Shadow. </p><p> </p><p>“Nice to see you again, Faker.” </p><p> </p><p>He blinked up in confusion at the chipper tone...was he not about to get punched in the face? He had expected anger and resentment, but there was none of that. Just that cocky attitude and lopsided grin. </p><p> </p><p>He was just acting... like his normal self again. As if none of it had ever happened. </p><p>His expression didn’t change as he studied the hero’s face. “...Whatever you say. Let’s get moving.” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic grinned and leaped forward. “Alrighty! Wanna race? Betcha five bucks you’ll lose!” </p><p> </p><p>Shadow took a deep breath and began to follow his rival. This was certainly going to be an interesting experience. </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Shadow needs to go to bed rip</p><p>Hell yeah, I didn't forget to post the second chapter! Whoo hoo! </p><p>Got any questions, comments, or critiques? Please tell me, it means alot and it's super helpful! :)</p><p>&lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Why Do You Look Still Cool Covered In Motor Oil?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Shadow fucking DIES. </p><p>(that was a lie he doesn't sorry)</p><p>Be warned though- this bad boy is a long one.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p><p>“Rouge? Where the<em> hell </em>are we supposed to be going?!” The obviously agitated hedgehog badgered for what seemed like the twentieth time since they had left. He waited a few seconds before finally giving up with a huff, and shut the communicator on his wrist. Sonic fought back the urge to roll his eyes, and when he eventually lost the will he was met with hot glare.</p><p> </p><p>The two hedgehogs had left a few hours ago, at first running through the sparsely placed trees. Quickly, the forest grew denser and denser, they were forced to walk at an agonizingly slow pace. Rouge gave them simple instructions, go to the nearest town on the other side of the forest, telling them that she would give them more updates on which way to go as they got there.  </p><p> </p><p>They obviously hadn’t planned this very well, because now the two were lost in the middle of nowhere, and had been arguing and had spent the last hour bickering.</p><p> </p><p>“The navigation system G.U.N made must have broken. I can’t get in touch with Rouge, and I have no idea where we are.” Shadow let out an exasperated sigh as he fumed.</p><p> </p><p>Sonic looked back over to the slightly shorter hedgehog and snorted. “Well, so much for that genius plan. Maybe we should just go back?” he crunched a leaf under his shoe- ”We can try again once G.U.N has got their shit together.” He grumbled, looking around at the unfamiliar trees that surrounded them. </p><p> </p><p>“Shut it, faker.” Shadow shot back hotly, and leaned over to grab his backpack. “When has G.U.N ever had their shit together? Come on, we’re going this way.” He huffed as they continued deeper into the tall trees. </p><p> </p><p>He narrowed his eyes as he glanced uncertainly at the agent who was now stomping blindly into a forest he had never been in before, he inwardly groaned at Shadow’s weird sense of pride when it came to things like this, there had been more than one time when they’d had the conversation “Nope, I do <em> not </em> need directions, I am the Ultimate Lifeform, you absolute buffoon. No, I am <em> not </em> lost in the slightest. Yes, I <em> definitely </em> remember which direction to go, which is <em> clearly </em> not the direction with the glowing exit sign.” Or something similar to that, which usually ended in them consulting maps <em> anyway, </em>much to Shadow’s displeasure.</p><p> </p><p>Sonic hesitated.”Hey Shads, are you sure this is a good idea? We’ve been wandering around for hours now. We’re <em> clearly </em>lost... and don’t have any food.” Sonic said uncertainty. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow didn’t turn around as he yelled back at the hero from his head start. “Well, we either sit here and starve to death or try and find a road. And I have a mission, hedgehog. You can leave if you’re not strong enough to finish what you started. And stop whining.” He said nonchalantly, clearly egging Sonic on. </p><p> </p><p>“Alright, alright.” He glowered, though he still jogged to catch up with Shadow.</p><p> </p><p>For a long time, the two stayed silent, other than the occasional point in the right direction every now and then. He huffed inwardly as they stumbled along a small, and very rocky path they had found through the forest of trees. </p><p> </p><p>His annoyance softened a bit. It was a lot easier to deal with Shadow when he wasn’t saying anything. A lot less tempting to get on his nerves, too. Usually he liked teasing the agent, at one point even thought that maybe he’d <em> enjoyed </em> it also, but recently he had clearly not been having it at all.</p><p> </p><p>The last few conversations they had held were a whole lot less fun. Shadow seemed to have shut down a little bit. </p><p> </p><p>He was <em> always </em> greeted with hot glares and belittling comments, but usually he could tell that he didn’t mean them, but recently it had started to <em> really </em> seem like the agent wanted to start a fight. It wasn’t the same as it had been before. They seemed more...personal. The things he said seemed to have gotten harsher, and it seemed like he meant it more than he used to. Eventually, they started fighting nearly every time they glanced at each other, he didn’t <em> want </em> to, but he was still angry. <em> Surely </em>he had to have known how much it hurt Sonic when he said things like that.  It really bothered him for whatever reason, Shadow seemed to have completely given up on him, and didn’t even bother trying to explain himself.</p><p> </p><p>Though he would never admit it, he kind of <em> missed </em> Shadow. How could he not?  There was something about the agent that <em> always </em> made him smile, and believe it or not, sometimes he could actually be funny too! The little half smiles-half smirks he makes whenever he’s showing off, his obnoxiously cool spikes that Sonic was <em> not </em> a tiny bit jealous of, they way you can almost <em> feel </em>the confidence glowing off of him when he fights... It was kind of distracting, but not in a particularly bad way. He was always excited to see him after his long missions with G.U.N, hoping for a race of just some stupid banter, but that seemed to have stopped entirely. </p><p> </p><p>They used to hang out constantly, despite his rival’s grumbling, he was never turned down when Sonic asked. It got to the point where Knuckles referred to the ebony boy as Sonic’s “Emo girlfriend”, of course not to Shadow’s <em> face </em> at least. He grimaced at the thought. Usually their outings involved a lot of below average fast food and cheesy one liners, races, and the occasional spar.  But a few months ago, it abruptly stopped. He knew that Shadow didn’t consider them to be friends, but <em> he </em> certainly did. He had a feeling their definitions of friends might be a bit different, though, so he tried not to push it.</p><p> </p><p>He was confused and angry at himself, <em> and </em> at Shadow. Had he done something wrong? He <em> wanted </em> to ask, but at the same time he knew he wouldn’t get an answer. It would probably just convince him even more that he hated the hero. Maybe if he just pretended they <em> hadn’t </em>been fighting, things could go back to the way they had been before, that's what he had decided. The way they should. He’d tried to apologize, but no matter what he did or who he asked, no one knew where Shadow went, or they just wouldn’t tell him.</p><p> </p><p>In fact, he hadn’t really heard <em> anything </em> from the agent in quite some time. Nothing from Rouge or even <em> Eggman </em> honestly, he had no clue what Shadow had been up to. </p><p> </p><p>He sighed, furrowing his eyebrows. They had been walking for quite some time now, he was still pretty sure they were lost, but he kept his mouth shut, biting the inside of his mouth. His feet hurt.</p><p> </p><p><em> Though...this is kinda nice. </em>Sonic thought, as he looked around the different shapes and heights of the shrubs that littered the forest floor. The occasional bird chirping or rustle in the bushes was the only thing that would break the silence. The trees towered above them, swaying softly in the cool breeze. Sun spots shifted and moved on the dirt path, making patterns on the leaves in front of Sonic’s feet.</p><p> </p><p>The air felt cool and damp against the hedgehog’s cheeks, despite how high the sun was in the sky. The occasional hot patches of sun felt nice on the top of his head.</p><p> </p><p>Sonic glanced over at his rival, who had seemed to be lost in his thoughts. <em> He looks... really tired. </em> The blue hedgehog observed. Shadow had dark circles under his eyes, and his movements were a bit sluggish. <em> Maybe that’s why he’s been so pissy recently. </em>He continued to watch Shadow for a few minutes, he didn’t seem like he was in a particularly bad mood anymore. </p><p> </p><p>“Hey Shadow, I’ve been meaning to ask” Shadow turned to look over to his rival. “What kind of bribes are you getting for going along with me?” The hero peered over to the agent, holding his arms behind his back. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow eyed Sonic and sighed. “We don’t get special presents to do our jobs, hedgehog.” He said flatly. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic hesitated for a second, surprised. “Really? They don’t give you anything for having to deal with me?” He questioned, ignoring the black hedgehog’s slightly condescending tone. He shook his head and walked a little faster to catch up with Shadow. “You sure are missing out on a lot of chili dogs then.” He said with a cheesy grin, trying to get him to snort.</p><p> </p><p>Instead though, he was met with a confused expression. “What the hell is a chili dog?” He wrinkled his nose in confusion.</p><p> </p><p>“What?! You can’t be serious.” Sonic said, his eyes wide. “You have been alive for <em> how long </em> , and you’ve <em> never </em> had a chili dog before?! Well, if we ever make it out of this forest, I’m making you eat one. It's the law.” The blue hedgehog insisted. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow rolled his eyes, scowling. “Not happening, faker.” He retorted, though Sonic questioned the hesitation in his voice.</p><p> </p><p>Then the two fell silent again. Continuing to walk through the woods, Sonic noticed  that the trees seemed a bit less dense than before. He looked up at the sky, he wanted to go on a run, but even now there were far too many roots and twigs he could trip over. </p><p> </p><p>A few more minutes passed, now the forest was clearly thinning out. Shadow must have noticed as well, because the two of them sped up. Sonic continued to peer at his rival, it was strange, Shadow actually having a conversation with him. Maybe he didn’t want to get in trouble with G.U.N or something?</p><p> </p><p>“Shadow,” Sonic finally said, “You kinda look like shit right now.” As he so lovingly put it.</p><p> </p><p>His rival looked over and snorted. “Speak for yourself.” He replied, raising his eyebrows. </p><p> </p><p>“Pfft. That’s probably what I get for staying up so late...” Sonic scratched his head sheepishly. “What’s your excuse then? G.U.N missions?” </p><p> </p><p>Shadow faltered, looking at his feet for a moment. “...Yeah.” he said sharply, before walking off bit faster than before.</p><p>The hero bit the inside of his cheek again. <em> Real smooth, hotshot. As the guy who hates you doesn't share stuff with anyone a weirdly personal question! </em> Clearly whatever he had said had hit a nerve and he decided it was probably best not to push it. He could tell that <em> something </em> was wrong, though he doubted he could ever get Shadow to admit it. He had trouble reading the agent's signals sometimes, with him being <em>Mr Ultimate Lifeform</em> and all that jazz.</p><p> </p><p>He furrowed his eyebrows and was about to open his mouth, but again decided it probably wouldn’t be in his best interest to poke any further. </p><p> </p><p>“Hey! There’s a town over there!” Sonic pointed to the lights that were just up ahead. “Maybe we could find a place to stay for the night.” He sped up, quickly changing the subject to clear the air. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow nodded and followed close behind. “I’ll see if I can contact Rouge.” He said while fumbling with the communicator once again.</p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>They spent the next few minutes in an uncomfortable silence. Sonic eyes kept drifting back to look at the agent, out of curiosity? Maybe concern? He couldn't really tell himself. But either way, he was <em>not</em> having it, at least judging by the increasingly annoyed glares he was met with in return. </p><p>A few minutes passed as they exited the forest and stepped onto the road. Shadow’s ears flattened. Something felt...off. Everything seemed a bit too quiet. The entire street was dead quiet, not a single person hanging around. As the sun began to set, a pale pink dusted the buildings and trees that surrounded them, though it didn't ease the concern growing in his gut. </p><p> </p><p>“Faker, we should leave. Something’s not right.” He warned, eyes flicking around anxiously. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic took a deep breath and groaned. He was tired and sore, and felt like utter shit. Though his comment was just an extra precaution, the hero interpreted it as another one of Shadow’s insightful complaints about wanting to go home. Practically the whole day, the two had spent arguing and the agent had made it <em> abundantly </em> clear that he wasn’t going to make this any easier. Maybe Shadow’s general aura of unhappiness had been rubbing off on him. </p><p> </p><p>“Oh, lighten up will you? You do this <em> every </em> time <em> ! </em> I don’t want to be here either, Shadow. I <em> get it. </em> Could you at least try not to be an asshole for three seconds?!” Sonic shouted with contempt. Even then he knew it would probably just provoke him more, but he didn’t care.</p><p> </p><p>Shadow eyes narrowed at him, Sonic felt his spikes tense up. The agent was clearly looking for a fight, and right now he might get one. </p><p> </p><p>Suddenly he lunged at Sonic and threw him down on the ground. “What the hell?!” Sonic shouted, trying to push Shadow off. He curled up into a ball, preparing to feel more impacts, but Shadow had already gotten up. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic looked over, trying to process what had just happened, before looking over at the huge crater just inches from where he had been standing. </p><p> </p><p>He had no time to think, as suddenly another metallic arm shot down towards him. “Eggman!” He muttered, dodging another attack. Finally he looked up to see the towering robot that had attacked him. </p><p> </p><p>The hero shot forward and ran up the robot’s arm, smashing the top of its head. Out of the corner of his eye he watched as Shadow walloped another group of metallic enemies that was approaching. Lunging out of the way as a piece of scrap metal nearly slammed him into a wall. They continued to fight, Sonic could feel how much his fatigue was rendering his abilities. </p><p> </p><p>His head pounded in his skull, he crouched lower, breathing heavily and attempted to shake it off. The scrapes on his arms and legs stung. The scent of burning rubber filled his nose, tasting metal in his mouth. </p><p> </p><p>The hedgie yelped as another foe caught him off guard. Instinctively throwing his hands above his head he braced himself for the attack. Suddenly, he watched as Shadow spin-dashed into the robot, pieces of metal and bolt shot in different directions. With its final bit of strength it shoved the agent off of itself and slammed him into a nearby wall. Sonic watched in horror as it slumped to its knees, and died. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic slowly stood up, his heart pounding in his chest as he gazed at the steaming wreck in front of him. Everything had ended as quickly as it had started. Suddenly he felt his stomach drop. Shadow had slumped over to the side, and he wasn’t moving. </p><p> </p><p>He raced over to his rival and carefully lifted his head. “...Shadow? A-are you okay, buddy?” He shook the black hedgehog’s shoulder softly. Nothing. He felt his voice crack as he looked down at the hedgehog. Sonic's mouth felt dry, his throat burned.. Shadow had cuts and bruises all over his body. <em> Oh Shit! This wasn't how it was supposed to go. I should have helped him, but... oh my god why did I let this happen? </em> Sonic’s thoughts raced through his head, he felt tears stinging his eyes. This wasn’t real. It couldn’t be. </p><p> </p><p>The hedgehog was too busy panicking to notice Shadow was still clearly breathing. His ear twitched in annoyance. A few seconds later, the agent’s eyes fluttered open, he sat up a bit with a groan. Sonic squawked in surprise and shoved himself a few inches away.</p><p> </p><p>“Shadow!” The hero exclaimed, quickly swiping an arm across his eyes. He let out a deep breath he hadn’t realized he was holding in. </p><p> </p><p>The ebony hedgehog looked around groggily, “..ow.” He said, rubbing the top of his head-”What on Earth…? Faker? Why are your eyes so red?” He tried to wipe off some of the soot and oil on his fur.</p><p> </p><p>“Oh! Um… some dirt must have gotten in them while were fighting that dumb Egghead’s robots.” He laughed nervously, trying to give his rival a grin, though he had a feeling it didn’t mask his strange attitude. His heart was still pounding in his chest. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow cocked his head, narrowing his eyes. He was about to question his strange behavior, but decided against it, preferring to slump back onto the shattered wall behind him.</p><p> </p><p>“Hm. It seems like Eggman may have noticed our arrival.” </p><p> </p><p>He nodded in agreement. “I betcha anything he’s up to something! We better ruin his fun soon, okay?” </p><p> </p><p>“I feel like we had already established that, Faker.” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic smiled softly, and with a snort he stood up, noticing a chill in the air. His arms and legs felt like jello, but he figured Shadow was probably worse off. He rifled around his quills for a second, and grabbed his phone. “Come on, Shadow” he gently held out his hand for him -”It’s getting pretty late. Can you stand?” </p><p> </p><p>He grimaced, and batted away Sonic and attempted to get up.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m <em> fine.” </em></p><p> </p><p> Shadow was obviously way too weak to be wandering around, grimacing in annoyance as he shakily stood. It didn’t last too long though, because he almost instantly slumped back to the floor, cursing. </p><p> </p><p>“I'm gonna take that as a no, then.” The hero said snorting. He leaned over to Shadow and as gently as he could, scooped the agent up into his arms.</p><p> </p><p>Shadow yelped and squirmed around in Sonic’s grip, though he wasn’t holding him very hard. “What?! I-i’m fine! I can walk! Faker, put me down!!!” He said lethargically, feeling his cheeks get hot from embarrassment. He tried to push the cobalt arms away from him, but his entire body felt like lead. </p><p> </p><p>“<em> Clearly </em> that’s not true. You have a huge gash on your leg dude, and trying to stand on it is only gonna make things worse.” </p><p> </p><p>“I’m not a <em> child, </em> hedgehog.”</p><p> </p><p>He rolled his eyes. “Don’t worry about it! I’ve carried <em> much </em>heavier people than you, Shads. Stop being such a baby.” He said casually as he dialed Rouge’s number.</p><p> </p><p>“That’s <em> not </em> the problem right now.” He glowered, still squirming.</p><p> </p><p>“Hey Rouge?” Sonic asked, ignoring his rival’s thrashing and his very colorful vocabulary. </p><p> </p><p>“Yes, Blue? Is everything okay? I got worried when I didn’t hear from you or Shadow for a couple hours.” She asked quickly. </p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, everything’s good.” Sonic said indifferently, looking down at the grumpy agent as he began to walk. “We made it to the other side of the forest. There wasn’t any connection, so we couldn’t contact you. And we ran into a pretty small fleet of badniks, nothing too crazy but Shadow still managed to get all banged up. Do you have any places to stay? We’re exhausted.”</p><p> </p><p>“Yes, and if I hadn’t, you wouldn’t have a head right now, Faker.”</p><p> </p><p>Sonic heard the bat sigh in relief on the other side of the phone. </p><p> </p><p>“Yes, you two certainly sound just <em> fine </em>. There’s a hotel just a few blocks away. Here, I’ll send you the directions to it, and I’ll get you two a room, alright? Contact me if you run into any more trouble, alright?”</p><p> </p><p>“Sounds good! I’m pretty sure they were alone though, doesn’t really seem like Eggman’s around.” Sonic chirped.</p><p> </p><p>“Alright, but keep an eye out, alright? Oh! And Blue?” Rouge asked. </p><p> </p><p>“Hm?”</p><p> </p><p>“Could you make sure Shadow gets some rest? His ego’s too big to admit whenever he needs help.” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic snorted. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure I can handle that.” He remarked before shoving his phone back into his quills. </p><p> </p><p>“I told you Sonic, I’m <em> fine.” </em> Shadow insisted, though the hero could tell by the fact that he wasn’t pierced full of chaos spears by now, that the agent was obviously exhausted. His arms dropped to the side, and he stopped moving.</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, okay, buddy. You literally passed out on some cement like, three minutes ago. It’s clear that you need a break. When was the last time you actually went to sleep?” Sonic asked, looking down at the hedgehog in his arms. </p><p> </p><p>He yawned and blinked a couple of times. “I dunno... its been a while though.” Shadow said softly. </p><p> </p><p>They spent the next few minutes in silence as the two hedgehogs made their way down the quiet avenues of the town, Sonic admired the quaint trees and lamps that lined the pathways, coating them in a soft yellow glow. </p><p> </p><p>Walking through the streets, the sky began to twinkle with stars, a soft breeze blowing through Sonic’s fur. </p><p> </p><p><em> Wow, I can’t believe that it’s already gotten so late… </em>Sonic thought to himself.</p><p> </p><p> His whole body felt sore from their fight, but the blue hedgehog did his best to ignore it. He shifted his arms uncomfortably under the weight of his backpack, he turned to look at the small shops and buildings the two passed, the occasional person passing them as the hero continued. The windows were mostly dark, and strangely this town still felt quite peaceful, despite the robots they had just encountered.</p><p> </p><p>He looked down, and noticed that Shadow was having an increasingly difficult time keeping his eyes open. His head unintentionally resting on Sonic’s shoulder, he too was observing the small town they had entered. </p><p> </p><p>“Hey, Shads, you go to sleep if you want. I’ll wake you up when we get there.” He prompted. Shadow turned to look at him, raising his eyebrows.</p><p> </p><p>“What? I’m not...that tired, Faker…and don’t call me that...” He yawned, rubbing his eyes. </p><p> </p><p>“Whatever you say, Shads. Just a suggestion.” He replied softly, noticing that the agent had leaned a bit closer to him. </p><p> </p><p>“Shut up you…ass.” He remarked wearily, though he closed his eyes anyway. </p><p> </p><p>“Woah there, no need to hurt my feelings just yet.” Sonic rolled his eyes, and smiled. </p><p> </p><p>He looked down at his feet, recounting the events of the day. <em> This... has been a really weird day. </em> Sonic thought. <em> Shadow was actually kind of… nice? At least compared to some of the more recent times we’ve met. </em>Despite all of the bickering and occasional snide comments, he’d actually been pretty pleasant.</p><p> </p><p><em> Kinda like old times. Well, not </em> <b> <em>old</em> </b> <em> old times, because he didn’t really like me then, either.  </em></p><p> </p><p>He looked back down at the ebony hedgehog in his arms, noticing all the dirt that matted it’s way into his fur, and a large cut down his cheek.</p><p> </p><p><em> Not only that, but he defended me… if Shadow hadn’t pushed me out of the way, I could have seriously gotten hurt, even though I was in the middle of bitchin’ at him, too. </em> </p><p> </p><p>That fight was probably the part that weirded him out the most. Sure, Shadow didn’t seem to actively try and hurt people, but he didn’t help them much, either. Maybe Rouge or Omega, but certainly not <em> Sonic.  </em></p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Maybe he just didn’t want to have to deal with a slightly flattened hedgehog for the rest of the mission, or maybe he was worried Amy would find out? </em>
</p><p> </p><p>He shivered at that thought. Despite being an incredibly nice girl, Amy had a bit of a short temper. <em> Especially </em>if it involved her friends getting hurt. And honestly, if he was in Shadow’s position, that probably would be a good enough reason. But still, something about that answer didn’t sit right, though he couldn’t give a better one. </p><p> </p><p><em> And… Why did I respond like that? </em> </p><p> </p><p>Sonic scrunched his eyebrows up, confused. That was another thing that bothered him. He’d seen Shadow get hurt before, hell, even seen him <em> die. </em>So why did this time it feel so… personal? </p><p> </p><p>Suddenly, a cold breeze snapped him out of his thoughts. He felt Shadow shiver in his arms, and unconsciously lean into Sonic’s chest. </p><p> </p><p>Something about that made the hero realize just how embarrassing this situation really was. He felt his cheeks get hot, despite the cold air blowing in his face. <em> Oh boy, if he doesn’t kill me today, he certainly will tomorrow. </em> Shaking his head, Sonic to a quick inhale and walked on, trying to forget the awkward position he had put himself into. He noticed that they were only about a street away from their destination, so the hedgehog re positioned his arms and powered the rest of the way. </p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>After about thirty seconds of struggling, Sonic finally watched the small light on the door turn green and opened the handle. </p><p> </p><p>It was incredibly dark, and he could only make out the general shapes of the two beds lined up on one wall. Honestly though, he was too exhausted to care about anything else but going to sleep. </p><p> </p><p>Gingerly, he laid his rival on the nearest bed, trying his best to not wake him up. Pulling the red backpack off of his shoulders, Shadow’s shoulders tensed from the sudden change of temperature, though he seemed to adjust quickly. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic smiled tiredly, and haphazardly dropped his own bag down next to Shadow’s. Exhausted, he collapsed onto his own bed face down, losing the small will he had left to stay awake. Feeling his eyelids grow heavy, Sonic sighed. </p><p> </p><p>“...I’m sorry for yelling at you. It was a stupid thing to do.” He said, faintly.</p><p> </p><p>“You are very good at doing stupid things.” </p><p> </p><p>“Thanks for the reminder.” </p><p> </p><p>“Always willing to help.”</p><p> </p><p>“...But seriously, thanks. It means a lot.” </p><p> </p><p>“I’m sure there’ll be more opportunities for you to be decapitated, so I thought I might help you out just this once.”</p><p> </p><p>He rolled his eyes and snorted, sighing into the mound of blankets. </p><p> </p><p>“Goodnight, Shadow.” He yawned, pulling the blankets around his shoulders. It stayed silent for a long time, the hero could feel himself nodding off, slumping deeper into the cool pillows.</p><p>“...Goodnight, Faker.” The response was soft, and sounded genuine, though it was muffled through pillows and blankets. He smiled, he felt a little bit better. Sonic had no clue if he had imagined it or not, being so tired, but he didn’t really care. Though his limbs may have ached, and he was sure he would wake up to find bruises, Sonic felt strangely content as he drifted off to sleep. </p><p>
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  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>adjwjdfhksk guess who can't write action scenes ;)))</p><p>Also thank you all very much! All of the comment are so niCE you all are amazing &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Shadow Goes on an Adventure (Against His Will)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Shadow opened his eyes to see a very unfamiliar room, looking nothing like the small room Rouge lent to him at her club, or the dank metal room he was lent to at G.U.N. For a moment, this fact greatly concerned him, as it probably<em> should </em> have, but glancing over at the huge mess of blankets and blue spines that stuck out at all sorts of angles, he quickly remembered. Much to his displeasure.</p><p>
  
</p><p>With a sluggish groan, he slumped back into the hotel's pillows, wrinkling his nose at the faint smell of laundry detergent. A part of him wished he could sleep for a bit longer, but he knew at this point there was no way that would happen. </p><p>
  
</p><p>His limbs still stung, cringing at the feeling of cuts and bruises that ran up and down his body. Most of them had already begun to heal, judging by the uncomfortable sting that burned through his arms, what a <em>blessing</em> being the Ultimate Lifeform was! He winced as a particularly strong wave of pain washed over his leg, he figured the gash on it would probably take at least a few more hours on it’s own. He furrowed his eyebrows in annoyance.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The room was small, with dark wood furniture and walls with sickening bright shade of yellow. An ancient tv stood up on a set of drawers on the other side of the room, along with some lights and a miniature fridge. Surprisingly decent for what they’d rented it for, especially at whatever ungodly hour the two of them had checked in. His memory felt fuzzy, it bothered him that he wasn’t able to place exactly <em> how </em> he’d gotten here. Everything he could recall was cloudy and vague.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Sighing, Shadow forced himself out of the blankets and rifled through his backpack, double checking that nothing had gotten lost. Mentally he counted over as many items as he could until he was eventually satisfied. Curiously, he peered over at Sonic, who was not any more awake than he was a few minutes prior. The blankets on top of him rising and falling with every breath the hero took. He wondered how anyone could sleep so peacefully. The ebony hedgehog felt a pang of jealousy, but shoved it down as fast as it came. He quickly shoved the contents of his bag back in and stood up. </p><p>
  
</p><p>A gust of wind made the long curtains sway and move, drawing Shadow’s attention to the window. </p><p>
  
</p><p>It was early in the morning, but even now the small town seemed busy. People strolled down the well kept streets, chattering and window shopping as they went. Shop owners cleaned in the bright sun, birds chirped up above his head. </p><p>
  
</p><p><em> This is quite a strange place </em> . Shadow observed. <em> One day it’s full of Robotnic’s robots and the next, it seems quite full of life. </em>He looked over at the clearing, though it was far away, he could still make out the large forest that they had passed through yesterday. The agent narrowed his eyes, trying to recount the events from the day before. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Suddenly, he heard a loud yawn from the other side of the room, forcing him out of his thoughts. <br/><br/></p><p>“Morning, Shadow.” the blue hedgehog said groggily, rubbing his eyes. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“We have to get going in half an hour, Sonic.” Shadow informed, blatantly ignoring Sonic’s greetings. “You should pack.” He tossed the hero’s bag on his bed with a thump.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Sonic rolled his eyes and stretched. Jumping up from his seat, he bent down to shove on his battered shoes. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Nice to see you too.” The blue hedgehog grumbled under his breath.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“So, we’re going back to Station Square, huh?” He questioned. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Shadow glanced up from the communicator on his wrist and nodded. “Looks like it. Apparently G.U.N wants us to stay there until they get further information on eggman’s hideout.” </p><p>
  
</p><p>Sonic raised his eyebrows. “Wait, they don’t even know where it <em> is?! </em> What was the point of making us come then?!” Scowling, he stood up and shoved on his backpack. </p><p>
  
</p><p>The dark hedgehog snorted in agreement. “It’s true, they <em> are </em>a complete mess, but if we don’t, we’ll just get Rouge in trouble, and she has enough on her plate as is.” </p><p>
  
</p><p>Despite what he might say from time to time, Shadow would pretty much do <em> anything </em> for that girl, and one of those things included helping her out on G.U.N missions. She was practically one of the only people who could make him sit and behave in front of authority figures, even if it was still filled with contempt. Despite all of her fussing, he knew she only did it because she cared about him. It wasn't like Shadow had a lot of people he could come to if he needed  help, and he wouldn't have asked for it regardless. But the bat seemed to know when something was up either way, and nine times out of ten she was able to drag it out of his mouth, much to his annoyance. And he knew how much Rouge stuck her neck out for him, and he was willing to do the same for her. Even if he had a hard time admitting it, they <em>both</em> knew how much it meant to the agent </p><p>
  
</p><p>He looked over at his rival, who was giving him a look he didn’t quite understand. Though when he turned away, Shadow noticed the smile that was one his lips.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“We should probably get moving. When G.U.N does have enough information, they're going to want us to be there <em> fast.” </em>He said, fumbling around his quills. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Finally, he took out the green chaos emerald and looked over at Sonic. His eyes widened at the sight of it, and groaned. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Shadow, visibly confused at such a reaction, stepped closer to the hedgehog who was now slumped on the floor. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“I <em> completely </em> forgot we had one of those! I walked for like, two hours yesterday...” He whined. </p><p>
  
</p><p>The agent snorted and leaned down, rolling his eyes. He fought back the urge to smile. He used the emerald to heal some of the cuts on his face, the strange, but familiar prickling sensation covered his body, before fizzling out. He held up the emerald for Sonic to do the same, which he gratefully accepted.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“No need to get your pants in a twist, loser. Come on, we should move.” Sticking out a hand to help Sonic back up. He also accepted with a grin, and brushed his other hand through his blue and messy quills.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Pfft, since when have I worn pants? You wouldn’t be so heartless if you had to carry yourself around for that long, dude! No one should have to face that kind of punishment.” That explains how he got here, then. The blue hedgehog gave the agent a sloppy grin, who gave him a scowl in return, his insides stinging with embarrassment. Sonic tossed the emerald back at him.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Shadow took a final look around the small room as he grabbed his own backpack from off of the floor. After confirming to himself that nothing was missing, he held the emerald above his head and breathed in. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Chaos contr-”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Ooh, wait! I have a better idea!” Sonic’s hand shot onto a striped arm, making Shadow jump in surprise- “let’s take the train instead!”. Sonic took the opportunity to reach over and pluck the emerald from out of his hand.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“No, dumbass! That’s a terrible idea! What the hell are you thinking?!” Shadow cried, desperately trying to grab the jewel back from him. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Just hear me out, okay? We have no clue when G.U.N’s gonna need us by right?” The hero insisted. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“<em> Exactly, </em>we have no clue when they are going to need us, so we shouldn’t be fooling around, Faker.” the agent narrowed his eyebrows, only slightly fuming. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Yeah, but are they <em> ever </em> fast? You said it yourself that G.U.N’s pretty incompetent!” He pleaded, a wide grin spreading across his face. “Please, Shadow? We can enjoy some nice scenery and just relax for a little while, hmmm? We’re pretty close anyway, so it’ll only take an hour or two, and if they <em> do </em>need us we can leave no matter what.” Sonic looked hopefully into this rival’s eyes, hoping that he had convinced him enough. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Shadow just stared at him, eyebrows slightly furrowed in agitation. Feeling the growing displeasurement in the air around them. Eventually, he gave up. Shoulders slumping, Sonic sighed and tossed the emerald back over to the hedgehog. </p><p>
  
</p><p>He sighed. “Fine. Whatever, just give me a minute, I gotta brush my quills out.” He said dramatically, walking into the bathroom across the room. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Turning over the gem in his hands absentmindedly, he frowned. A strange feeling was forming Shadow’s gut, and he didn’t like it very much. He sighed and sat back down on the bed. </p><p>
  
</p><p><em> This is really foolish and unnecessary…. But… he did seem excited. </em> He thought, staring at the floor. </p><p>
  
</p><p>A few minutes passed, and eventually the door opened again, and Sonic stepped out still looking gloomy, though slightly less homeless. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Okay… we can leave whenever you’re ready.” He uttered, putting his hand on his arm. Shadow stood up and walked towards the door. Making Sonic look at him questioningly. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Well come on, fakert. You said lets go.” Shadow prompted, cocking his head behind him. The hero felt himself break out into a wide grin. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Wait really? Can we?! I’m not really<em> that </em> disappointed or anything... we don’t have to if you really don’t want to, but...really?!” He beamed, eyes gleaming. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“<em> Yes </em>, dumbass. Hurry up before I change my mind.” He prodded his overly excited companion. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Oh hell yeah, Shads! You won’t regret this, I <em> promise! </em> It’s gonna be so much fun!” Sonic squealed, as he practically bounced out into the hallway. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Stop calling me that.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Shadow smiled, despite himself. He felt a warm sensation pass through his chest, though it met him with a wave of guilt. He took a deep breath, trying to shake it off as he walked towards the door. </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Sonic could barely contain his excitement. The two of them had finally sat down in one of the train’s dingy cars near the door. The seats were scratchy and torn, the floor inexplicably stuck to the bottom of his red shoes, though it was impossible to tell what kind of goo he had stepped in. </p><p> </p><p>The air was stale, and the car creaked and groaned whenever someone passed, and the hero was absolutely<em> delighted. </em></p><p> </p><p>He couldn’t really put his finger on why he liked going on trains so much, no matter how gross one might be. Despite knowing absolutely nothing about them, he loved watching the windows when they sped through tunnels and hillsides. It reminded him of how he felt when he ran, though this was probably more special, since he did so little. </p><p> </p><p>He turned over to look at Shadow, who had checked the clock on his phone at least four times, and the train hadn’t even left yet. He was clearly not very amused by public transport.</p><p> </p><p>Sonic nudged his with his elbow, prompting him to look up. “Whatcha up to, Shads?” He questioned.</p><p> </p><p>Shadow made a face and shoved his phone away. “I was <em> trying </em>to see if I could reach Rouge, but there’s no cell service out here…” He grumbled. </p><p> </p><p>The hero snorted. “Looks like you're just going to have to talk to me then.” Sonic poked, crossing his legs in his seat. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow took a long look at his rival, then out the window, and scowled back at Sonic. “...Yeah, I think this might be my stop.” Responded the black hedgehog, standing up and attempting to walk back out. Amused, Sonic grabbed his arm and pulled him back. </p><p> </p><p>“It’s not a very good idea to get up on a moving train, my friend.” Sonic replied, before shoving his nose into his backpack. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow scowled at him and looked out the window again. “This is going to take forever, isn’t it… ” the agent grumbled as he slumped back in his seat. Picking up his phone to check the service again. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic snorted and pulled out his own and a pair of headphones. “I think you can go two hours without talking to your girlfriend.” finally untangling the white wires, he tossed them to Shadow- ”Here- I kinda figured you might get bored.” </p><p> </p><p>He eyed the headphones in his hand, hesitating, before shoving them back at their owner with a scowl. “Rouge is <em> many </em>things, but certainly not that. Anyway, I’m fine, Faker. Just... stop bothering me.” He turned away, though his tone wasn’t nearly as aggressive as he would have liked.</p><p> </p><p>Sonic frowned, looking at the back of Shadow’s head. Something seemed kinda off with him, though he wasn’t sure he knew what to ask. </p><p> </p><p>“Hey, look.” He nudged the agent and pointed to something out the window. As he glanced over to see, Sonic gently placed one headphone in his ear, and the other in his own. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow’s hand quickly shot up to his ear in surprise. Realizing what it was, he gave the azure hedgehog a heated glare, though he made no attempts to pull it out. </p><p> </p><p>The hero was surprised by this response. Staring blankly at his rival, still half expecting him to yell at Sonic, or for him to snap them in two. But, nothing. His headphones weren’t long, so he had to lean closer to Shadow so they wouldn’t get pulled out. Again, he hesitated. And again, there was little response. Sonic felt himself smile. </p><p> </p><p>He scrolled through his phone for a few minutes before finally pressing play. </p><p>Immediately, the agent tried his best to suppress a snort from behind his hand. </p><p> </p><p>“What’s so funny?” Sonic questioned, feeling his cheeks get hot. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow continued to stifle a laugh. “I just didn’t really peg you as someone who listens to One Direction, I guess.” </p><p> </p><p>“What’s wrong with One Direction, Shadow?!” He defended, dismayed. </p><p> </p><p>“There’s nothing <em> wrong </em>with them, I guess. It just kind of caught me off guard that you listen to such girly stuff…”  </p><p> </p><p>Sonic stuck his nose in the air and playfully jabbed him in the shoulder. “What’s wrong with that?! Sorry I don’t listen to Emo music or whatever you like, you cretin.” </p><p> </p><p>The ebony hedgehog gave him an appalled face, his mouth hanging open in alarm at those accusations. “Who told you I listen to that?!” Sonic grinned, sitting back in his seat and turning to look out the window. </p><p> </p><p>“But you <em> do, </em>don’t you?” He huffed.</p><p> </p><p>Shadow rolled his eyes, but didn’t deny it to Sonic’s amusement.</p><p> </p><p>They spent the rest of the trip in a comfortable silence as the trees and cityscapes flashed by the train’s windows. He watched the hills rise and fall, the power lines and street light that lined the roads, feeling content. Sometimes he would look over at Shadow, who smiled to himself when he thought no one was looking. </p><p> </p><p>But mostly he daydreamed. That was probably why he liked doing stuff like this so much, it gave him time to think. With all the hustle and bustle of his normal life, it was nice to relax once and awhile, even if it was only for a few hours. He leaned up against his arm and thought about his friends, he wondered how Amy and Tails were doing, though he had already texted them both many times, mostly to complain, but he still hoped everything was doing all right. </p><p> </p><p>He had more fleeting thoughts, too. Trying to come up with more cheesy one liners to tell Eggman once they beat him up again, or what he wanted for his birthday, which was in a few months (ultimately he decided on a chili dog). It was quite fun, though he still felt a bit strange with how willing Shadow was to do things with him. Even at their best, he practically had to beg Shadow to go do things with him, so what was different now? Despite his grumbling and constant scowls, he didn’t seem all that miserable. Sonic was glad.</p><p> </p><p>Eventually, the train slowly came to a halt at the train station nearest to Station Square, though it still wasn’t very close. Originally, they had planned to go to the station directly in the area, but soon they realized the small town they had arrived from didn’t make any stops there today. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic sighed as the train pulled up to the curve, and began to grab his bag from next to his feet. He gave Shadow a nudge and motioned for him to do the same, which he also reluctantly followed. </p><p> </p><p>As the two hedgehogs stepped out of the train, Sonic glanced over at the agent with a grin. “So Shads, did you have fun?” He said in a sarcastic tone, smiling widely.</p><p> </p><p>Shadow turned his head to the side as they walked, and furrowed his eyebrows slightly. “Yeah, it wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it would be.” He concurred. He felt Shadow’s eyes meet his gaze, which was an unusual thing for him to do.</p><p> </p><p>“Though your choice of music certainly didn’t help.” He gave Sonic a sly grin, making Sonic roll his eyes through a smile.</p><p> </p><p>Walking out of the train station, the two stood still for a few moments, contemplating their next move. “Well, when we make it to Station Square, we definitely have a hotel this time, so we shouldn’t have to worry about that.” Sonic observed, looking around at the dimming sky. “Maybe we should just get a taxi…?” </p><p> </p><p>Shadow smiled. “Actually, I have a better idea.” He said, making Sonic look up questionly. “Care for a race, Faker?” He challenged, holding out his hand. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic’s eyes shone at the idea. “I thought you’d never ask.” He replied smugly. “First one to the hotel?” </p><p> </p><p>Shadow nodded in agreement. With that settled, they both gave each other a knowing grin, and shot out from under the station’s awning. Sonic felt his heart race from excitement as he ran, his blood pumped with adrenaline. </p><p> </p><p>“Is this less fun than a train ride?” Shadow yelled over the sound of the wind, speeding ahead of him. Sonic beamed. Nope. Okay, maybe he had lied before. There was nothing as fun as running. </p><p> </p><p>Weaving through the crowded city streets, Sonic flung himself over and around cars, zipping through alleyways and up buildings. The lights of Station Square glittered all around them, bustling with life and energy, the billboards and shops that whipped by as the hero pushed his legs to run faster and harder than before. His heart pounded in his chest, the wind whipping his face so hard it stung. Yeah, this was the most fun he’d had in a <em> long </em>time. </p><p> </p><p>He took a sharp turn and cut in front of Shadow’s path, making a variety of rude gestures and faces at him, before whooping in excitement and taking off flying ahead. </p><p> </p><p>Though his lead was not long lived, as Shadow dashed through the busy highways and intersections to catch up with a scowl. </p><p> </p><p>“Ooh, Shadow! That’s pretty risky, you know! Running into oncoming traffic isn’t exactly road legal!” He teased. </p><p> </p><p>He heard a snort. “Hah! Your ego’s so big it looks like you're about to pop, hedgehog! But don’t worry, I’ll do it for you after I beat you.” The agent retorted, sprinting ahead. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic stuck out his tongue and made a face. “Yeah right! As i- AH! There’s a kid! Oh crap oh crap oh crap!” He squawked, shoving both of them out of the way of a young child. This sudden swerve made them both lose their footing and trip, skidding into a pile on the other side of the road. </p><p> </p><p>The blue hedgehog let out a sigh of relief, realizing he had not ran over any passing children in their bickering. “...Oh Jesus Christ….” He said through quick breaths, exasperated. </p><p> </p><p>He rolled over to glance at Shadow. Who was also lying on the floor, breathing quickly. After a few seconds, he put a hand over his mouth and giggled. Not like a snort, but a <em> giggle </em> . He was having a hard time containing his laughter. “Oh my… that was awful.” He said, full of glee. Sonic hesitated for a second, speechless. He’d never seen Shadow laugh like that before, in fact, he’d hadn’t thought he’d ever seen Shadow laugh at <em> all. </em> He felt the corners of his mouth rise.</p><p> </p><p> Letting out another sigh, he stood up and brushed himself off, seeing that Shadow had done the same. “Sorry about that.” He grinned sheepishly, “Not the <em> best </em> way to end a race...” He scratched the back of his head.</p><p> </p><p>“What? No, that was fun. I enjoyed that quite a bit, actually.” Shadow was still clearly beaming, and looked at the pavement.</p><p> </p><p>“What got Mister Edgy over here in such a good mood today? And you’re just saying that because I almost ran over a child…” Sonic muttered grumpily. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow snorted and enthusiastically nodded in agreement. “Of course! That was the best part!” He readjusted his backpack slightly-”But, the rest was pretty fun, too.” The agent said a bit softer, looking up towards the skyscrapers that towered above them. </p><p> </p><p>“...I didn’t realize how pretty it was here at night.” He commented a few moments later, more to himself than the hero.</p><p> </p><p>“...Yeah, I guess it is.” He agreed, faintly. Taking a moment to look at the city around them.</p><p> </p><p>Though quickly, he started peeking at something else. Sonic fell silent for a minute, as his eyes drifted over to Shadow, watching his rival admire their surroundings, maybe for a couple of seconds too long, because something about it made his heart skip a beat. His dark fur looked so soft and smooth, his eyes sparkling in the dark street. Had he always looked so... pretty? <em> I didn’t know that Shadow had such a nice smile… </em>he thought to himself, feeling his cheeks turn slightly red. Though again, he still was confused why. </p><p> </p><p>He had always enjoyed hanging out with Shadow, but...it felt different somehow.</p><p> </p><p>Shadow turned to question him, but the hedgehog had already hastily turned away, clearing his throat. “So, um, anyway… We’re pretty close now. Only a few more minutes.”  </p><p> </p><p>He nodded, not noticing the hero’s embarrassment. After a while of walking, his eyes light up in remembrance. “I suppose so. Sonic, we never figured out who won our race!” The exclaimed, pulling him out of his thoughts. </p><p> </p><p>“Oh, I guess not, huh? I bet that I won.” Sonic replied confidently, forgetting his previous train of thought. </p><p> </p><p>“What?!” Shadow said, perplexed. “Why are you acting so smug?!” He pouted. </p><p> </p><p>“Eh, It’s just intuition, Shadow. I just have a feeling I did, so… that’s how it works.” He said calmly, though he was clearly just making it up as he went along. </p><p> </p><p>“<em> That </em>’s what you're basing this on? I wouldn’t trust your “intuition” with anything, Sonic.”</p><p> </p><p>He rolled his eyes and smiled,“Actually, now that I think about it, we still haven’t even made it to the goal yet.” He realized. “We agreed that it was the first one to the hotel, right?” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic nodded, and looked back at him. “Could we just call it a tie, then? I’m not sure I’m in the mood to run anyone else over…” He asked, a bit discouraged at the thought. </p><p> </p><p>The agent yawned, stretching his arms above his head. “Yeah, that would probably be best. It’s getting pretty late, and I don’t want you crying yourself to sleep if I beat you too much.” He teased, getting a jab to the side in response. </p><p> </p><p>“Whatever you say to make yourself feel better, Shads.” Sonic replied, grinning back. </p><p> </p><p>“If you call me that one more time I’m actually going to throttle you.” </p><p> </p><p>“Yeah right! I’d like to see you try, Shads!”</p><p> </p><p>“I’m not kidding! I <em>will</em> throw you into the road if I have to.”</p><p> </p><p>The two of them continued to walk through the city, joking and teasing each other until they eventually made it to the hotel, a warm feeling bubbling in Sonic's chest that he hadn't felt in what seemed like forever. </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hello, my friends! I have 3 things to say and it will be fast:</p><p>#1 I've only heard like, two One Directions songs before, so please do not be offended if I get the lore wrong or something, idk. I just thought it was funny to make him listen to boy bands despite being portrayed on multiple occasions that he Does Not. B)<br/>#2 I went back to school again! I don't think it will effect the timing of when new chapters come out, but if that does happen I hope you understand why, I have to go to Zoom meeting instead of writing a gay romance between two anthropomorphic hedgehogs :(<br/>#3 Thank you all v much for the comments and things, it really does mean a lot to me, so I hope you enjoy the next few chapters because things start to get a little bit more interesting ;)<br/>Stay safe! &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Some Rather Disappointing News</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>sHadoW anD SonIc haVe tO gO to A pLacE??? AnD tHerE's onLy onE bEd??? oH?????? WhAt wIlL haPpEN nExT???</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next few days were quite uneventful, mostly spent following leads to where Eggman’s new base may be. Each day, Rouge would send them directions to locations, assuring them that <em> this time </em> they might find something, and the two hedgehogs would go, it would lead to disappointment. A few robots milling around, but no significant clues. </p><p> </p><p>Despite being a bit boring, it hadn’t been all bad. Sonic had been quite civil, and surprisingly enough, their trip had gone quite smoothly. But that quickly changed when a problem arose. </p><p> </p><p>The more time they spent together, the worse it got. The cloud of regret that was growing in his stomach, hadn’t gone away. He’d keep ignoring it for as long as he possibly could.</p><p> </p><p>“What do you mean we can’t afford another night?!” Sonic exclaimed with a worried look. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow frowned, and again rifled through his backpack, looking for any extra cash he might have had, but just like the last time he had checked, only a couple wadded up tens and ones. Not nearly enough to pay for a hotel room in the middle of Station Square. He sighed and slumped back into his chair. “We’re broke, and G.U.N didn’t give us nearly enough money to cover a hotel room any longer than a couple of days.” </p><p> </p><p>“That might be a bit of a problem…” Sonic said, resting his head on his hand, “Maybe we could call Rouge…?” Wondered the hedgehog. </p><p> </p><p>The agent nodded and pulled out his phone. “I’ll try, but I don’t think there’s very much she can do from there.” He responded, waiting for the bat to pick up the ringing. </p><p> </p><p>“Rouge? You there?” He asked. </p><p> </p><p>“Hey hon, still no news from G.U.N if that's what you’re about to ask, they’ve exhausted all four of their leads.” She began with a huff. “Just sit tight and stay ready, no matter how long it may take, they always figure it out.” Shadow heard Rouge sigh come from the other end, clearly annoyed as well. </p><p> </p><p>“Actually, we might have a slight problem with that…” He cleared his throat. </p><p> </p><p>“Oh? What's wrong?” She questioned worriedly. </p><p> </p><p>“We’re broke and about to get kicked out of our hotel!” Sonic hollered from across the room, not in the mood for beating around the bush. </p><p> </p><p>“What?!” Rouge exclaimed. “A-alright… in that case, I’ll go talk to my bosses and see what I can do! Stay there and please don’t do anything stupid you two, be back in a couple of minutes!” And with that she hung up the phone with a click. </p><p> </p><p>The two blinked at each other in confusion, this trip was clearly not going as planned. Worriedly, Sonic stood up and began shoving his head under the bed, between cushions, and in drawers. </p><p> </p><p>“What are you doing?” The black hedgehog asked, raising his eyebrows as his rival continued to dig around the room. </p><p> </p><p>“Looking for quarters and stuff.” He said, holding up a coin for Shadow to see. “It probably won’t be enough to pay for a hotel room, but anything’s better than nothing, right?” He smiled, before continuing his search.</p><p> </p><p>Cocking his head, the agent furrowed his eyebrows. “I’m gonna take a wild guess and say it won’t.” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic snorted, finally giving up. “Yeah, but Tails likes looking at the different pictures, so I figured I’d get some for him anyway. Don’t worry about it too much, Rouge is smart. She’ll figure it out.” He hesitated. A small smile tugged at the ebony hedgehog’s lips.</p><p> </p><p>Suddenly a ringing broke the lull in their conversation with a slight jump.</p><p> </p><p>“Okay, we have some good news and some bad news. Shadow, tell Blue to listen to this as well.” The bat began, waiting a few seconds as the blur walked over to sit next to his rival. </p><p> </p><p>“Okay, we’re listening.” Shadow confirmed. </p><p> </p><p>“Good news is that I’m coming down there in a couple of days to get you two supplies and support. And the bad news…” Rouge trailed off. </p><p> </p><p>“It’s gonna take some time?” Sonic answered, feeling his shoulders slump. </p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, it probably will. G.U.N’s been having some other missions going on in more dire situations, so this isn’t considered a first priority.” The thief affirmed his concerns. </p><p> </p><p>He can feel the annoyance bubbling up in his gut. Of <em> course </em> they were just sending him on a wild goose chase. If they aren’t considering Eggman a threat, what the hell are they doing here?!</p><p> </p><p>“But, there is one option we have... but you two are not going to be very pleased.” She continued. </p><p> </p><p>“What is it? We really don’t have many choices right now…” Shadow narrowed his eyes. </p><p> </p><p>“Well, you can afford to get a twin bed until then, I’m pretty sure.” </p><p>Sonic sighed in relief. “See! I <em> told </em>you we had nothing to worry about! We can handle some shitty motel for a couple of days, right Shads?” He glanced over at the other hedgehog, smiling. </p><p> </p><p>“No hun, as in there’s only <em> one </em> twin in some shitty motel for a couple of days.” </p><p> </p><p>The two looked at each other with wide eyes. There was <em> no way </em> that was a good idea, the ultimate lifeform concluded. </p><p> </p><p>“Ah.” He faltered, his cheeks reddening. </p><p> </p><p>Rouge let out another sigh. “Yes, I know it’s not ideal, and I understand that you all probably don’t want to, but we really don’t have any other choices. You’re smart, so I have a feeling you two’ll figure something out. I’ll give you some though, alright? Just text me if you decide to.” </p><p> </p><p>Shadow hung up and stared blankly at the wall. </p><p> </p><p>“Well that was quite disappointing news.” He said flatly. Sonic also didn’t seem very keen on this plan, but what else could they do?</p><p> </p><p>“There has to be <em> something </em>else.” Sonic stammered. “I-i mean, that's just...” </p><p> </p><p>“Maybe it would be better to just live on the streets.” He uttered gloomily. </p><p> </p><p>They sat there for a long time, discussing ideas of what to do. At first Sonic suggested using chaos control to go home and then come back with more money, but they decided it would still take too much energy to travel that far, and too much time. It seemed quite hopeless, and neither seemed to be thinking very seriously. Every time they tried to discuss solutions, they just got distracted. </p><p> </p><p>“Alright, this isn’t going anywhere. I’m just gonna call Rouge.” Shadow grumbled an hour or so later. He still felt very uneasy about doing it, but they were out of options. Maybe he’d just sleep on the floor. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic tried to protest, but realized that he had no other plans. Sighing, he pulled out his phone as well. “Fine, I guess we have no choice. I’m gonna tell Tails and Am-” His eyes lit up. </p><p> </p><p>“Wait that's it!” He cried with a grin. “Shadow! Don’t call her just yet, I have an idea!” </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I'm sorry this one is so short! Promise next week we will have some more!!! My entire state is on fire rn though so whoops? My house might burn down? Oh no??? </p><p>Hope you all are doing good and stay safe!!! Wear a mask &gt;:)</p><p>!~Thank you for reading~! ;) &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Teacups and Saucers</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Amy is not very impressed with her new housemates.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“You know Sonic, when I meant I could help out, I was thinking more like giving you some food or something…” The pink haired girl raised her eyebrows hesitantly. Her hand was still on the door, where the hero was smiling brightly on the other side.</p><p>Grinning sheepishly, he scratched the side of his head. “I know, it’s less than ideal. But I promise I’ll make it up to you! Shads and I will do our part, and only be for a couple of days. Okay, Ames?” He pleaded. </p><p> </p><p>She rolled her eyes, and opened the door. “I was gonna let you in either way, dummy.” Amy grumbled. “Give me a minute, okay? I have to put some things away.” </p><p> </p><p>As the door clicked shut Sonic gave his rival a big dopey grin. “See? I <em> told </em> you I figured it out.” He said in a sing-song tone. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow narrowed his eyebrows, staring down at his feet. “...Yeah.” He hesitated. </p><p> </p><p>He felt the hero give him a worried look, though he didn’t turn to face it. Seconds later, Amy appeared at the door again, motioning them to come inside. </p><p> </p><p>“You can stay here as long as you need, but you <em> have </em>to clean up behind yourself, okay? Understand? No making some huge mess-” Amy said sternly, though she was quickly cut off by a hug, making her expression soften. </p><p> </p><p>“Ames, you’re the best, you know that? I promise we won’t be a nuisance!” He smiled. </p><p> </p><p>The agent glanced down at his feet uncomfortably. He crossed his arms, not knowing what to do with his hands. He looked up at the two in front of them, Sonic clearly more comfortable than he’d ever been around <em> him. </em>He tried to ignore the tiny twinge of jealousy in his stomach. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow unintentionally drowned out the rest of the conversation, getting lost in his thoughts. This seemed to be a common theme with Sonic, dragging him around whenever he got an idea. He hadn’t particularly minded it at first, but he had an uneasy feeling things wouldn’t end well. </p><p> </p><p>He knew that this was a bad idea, indulging in this. He shouldn’t have come here. It’s for the best, it would have been better if he had stayed home. Away from the temptation to mess up all over again. He was setting himself up to fail.</p><p> </p><p>But if he’d stayed alone any longer he would have lost his brains, even if it<em> was </em> the right thing to do. Rouge wouldn’t have let him anyway. She’d probably kick him out of the house herself if she’d seen him sulking any longer. He wouldn’t let it get to his head, not again. He was determined to do the right thing this time around, and as soon as they defeated Eggman, he would never see Sonic or his friends again. </p><p> </p><p> Shadow turned away from them, feeling that all too familiar discomfort again. That feeling that he was interrupting on something intimate only seemed to grow from the last time, seeing the blush that formed on Amy’s face. It wasn’t like he’d never seen this before, Sonic was always kind of clingy around his friends. <em> Or at least the ones he likes anyway... </em> He clutched his backpack a little harder, and did his best to ignore it. Why did this always bother him so much? </p><p> </p><p>Eventually, he was waved over to the door by the hero, skipping into the apartment as if he owned the place. That probably shouldn’t have come as a surprise, he and Rose had known each other for a long time. He noticed how quickly the atmosphere shifted as he passed. The heroine’s mouth became a thin line, giving him a quick but unnatural nod of recognition before turning away. He felt a wave of nausea hit his stomach. Disappointingly familiar. Taking a deep breath, the agent followed them inside. </p><p> </p><p>The first thing Shadow noticed was that everything was very <em> pink </em>. Not particularly surprising considering who owned it, but still very pink. The apartment wasn’t huge, though it was neat and comfortable. White shelves covered in picture frames and trinkets lined the soft pink walls. The living room was large, with tall glass windows facing out onto the city street. A few couches and chairs were placed near a large fluffy rug, which again, was pink. </p><p> </p><p>The kitchen next door also had a common theme, herbs and spices grew in pots on a windowsill over the sink. The countertops, which of course, were pink, were covered in flour and ingredients, and the whole room smelled of freshly baked bread. The house seemed quite quaint and stylish, the rooms down the hall Shadow assumed were bedrooms, though he didn’t ask.</p><p> </p><p>“Come over here, you two.” Amy smiled, leaning up against the counter. “Sorry it’s a bit messy, but I really wasn’t expecting any company today…” She said grimacing at her counters,  before turning around and pulling out some saucers. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow felt the hero staring at him again, but he continued to ignore it. Instead, sitting down at the table Amy had asked them to. A few moments of hesitation later, Sonic did the same. God, he should have just stayed home. Maybe Rouge could let him sleep in a tent or something.</p><p> </p><p>“So Ames, what have you been up to lately? Anything exciting?” Sonic grinned, flopping over the table happily. He looked very content, half falling out of the wooden chair. <em> Cute. </em> Shadow kicked his ankle as hard as he could without the others noticing. Now was <em> not </em> the time to be thinking about things like that.</p><p> </p><p>She snorted, shaking her head. “No, nothing much. I guess I did some laundry yesterday… but overall, not anything too interesting. Things aren’t nearly as fun over here when you aren’t around...” </p><p> </p><p>Yikes. He <em> really </em> shouldn’t be here.</p><p> </p><p>Setting down some tea cups on the table, the pink haired hedgehog also sat down. She picked up the pink kettle and poured some tea into her glass, before handing it to Sonic. </p><p> </p><p>“I’m more interested in what you’ve been up to, honestly. Any news about Eggman?” She asked, her eyes sliding across the table until she was staring intently at Shadow. </p><p> </p><p>He felt his skin crawl, looking at the obvious wary expression that slid across her face. His rival, chattering on excitedly about their recent adventures, had not noticed the tension that hung in the air. </p><p> </p><p>He looked back, slightly confused, slightly concerned. It was clear he was not wanted here. His eyes landed back on the tea in his hands, which was nearly full. Though he could still feel her eyes burning holes into the side of his head. He felt his insides turn to mush. Clearly she didn’t want him here either. </p><p> </p><p>Not very surprising.</p><p> </p><p>This continued for sometime, long after everything had been put away, and after Amy showed them to where they would be staying. The two friends talked and laughed, though whenever addressing Shadow, her tone would change slightly. Still very polite, but also very rigid and forced. She kept shooting wearing glances over to him when she thought he wasn’t looking, like she was scared he’d blow up and shatter all of her pretty glass figures that were displayed on the wall. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow understood <em> why, </em> he knew he wasn’t the easiest person to get along with, especially when he waltzed into someone’s house unannounced. He doubted she’d already forgotten the <em> last </em>time he’d seen Sonic. Even at his best, he hadn’t done a good job at this kind of thing. He was never really one for politeness. To be fair, it wasn’t like he’d gotten much practice. He’d grown up in a space station afterall. He was used to the slightly scared tone people got, or the nervous laughter. He decided it would probably be best if he kept his mouth shut and kept to himself. It was for the better if she acted like that anyway. </p><p> </p><p>That plan didn’t last long though, as Sonic loudly announced he needed to go take a leak, it left the two alone. Amy had her back turned to him, and was washing some plates. A very awkward silence fell between them, as they were very unsure what to do next. </p><p> </p><p>“Do you need any help with that?” He asked cautiously, making Amy nearly jump out of her skin in surprise. Nearly knocking over a pile of plates she had in her hand, she quickly tried to recompose herself. </p><p> </p><p>“Um, s-sure!” She stammered, trying to maintain her cheery tone. The pink haired girl stepped a few feet to the side, making room for him to wipe off the dishes. She stiffened as he stepped over to the sink. He grimaced slightly, she was clearly having a difficult time with this. With a sigh, he picked up a rag. </p><p> </p><p>The awkward silence seemed to hang above them, as Amy passed one cup after another to Shadow, without saying a word. </p><p> </p><p>“He sure is taking quite a long time…” She said, laughing timidly. Shadow furrowed his eyebrows, sighing. </p><p> </p><p>“...You don’t have to do that, you know.” He said softly, making Amy turn to question him. “I mean, it's okay, I get why you’re uncomfortable. I promise I’ll stay out of your way and won’t make any trouble. Thank you for letting us stay here.” </p><p> </p><p>“O-oh, okay.” She nodded in a much more natural tone. Her shoulders relaxed slightly.</p><p> </p><p>He wiped off the last dish before walking away.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The next few days seemed to ease some of the tension between Amy and Shadow. He <em> knew </em> there would probably be some problems, but at least they had attempted to get along. In retrospect, maybe it would have been better if he’d just made do sleeping in a hotel. Shadow would probably just sleep on the floor, the stubborn bastard. It wasn’t like he wasn’t happy to see Amy, in fact, he was really enjoying getting to see her again. But he knew it wasn’t as easy for the agent. He wasn’t exactly…  chatty, more of a “If you annoy me too much I’ll stab you with a chaos spear” kind of guy. He could be a little intimidating to say the least. But, no matter <em> how </em> uncomfortable the air got, he did his best to ignore it. He hoped it would make them both have a bit more ease. And maybe if he was <em> really </em>lucky, they might actually get along. </p><p> </p><p>Though he wasn’t sure what caused it, they certainly did warm up to each other a little bit. Something told him it wasn’t whatever<em> he </em>had been attempting to do, in fact they both rejected pretty much all of his schemes.  Amy seemed to be less wary of Shadow, even if they still didn’t really interact too much. They were polite enough to be able to play board games with, and help make dinners, which was as good a victory as any in Sonic’s book. </p><p> </p><p>It made him happy to see that his rival was actually <em> attempting </em> to be nice. Shadow was a pretty cool guy, it made him sad that more people didn’t talk to him. Not that he was sure Shadow <em> wanted </em> more people to… </p><p> </p><p>Was it weird that he’d gotten so invested in making the boy talk to people? Probably not, right? That was just something friends do. It was normal to have the smallest pang of annoyance whenever they did interact, right? It was probably just because he was used to having all of Shadow’s attention. Yeah. That was it.</p><p> </p><p>One morning, Amy cheerfully burst into her medium sized guest room and rudely shook Sonic so much he nearly rolled off of his bed in surprise. </p><p> </p><p>“Good morning, sleepy head! Nice to see you up so early!” She teased, though Sonic only groaned in exhaustion. </p><p> </p><p>“Can you and Shadow go down and pick up some groceries for me? I’d do it, but I have a lot of stuff to do today.” Amy smiled. </p><p> </p><p>He blinked at her a few times and frowned. “Ames, can’t you let a guy have a break? I’ve only been awake a couple of minutes…” the hero grumbled, though he was still going to do it anyway. </p><p> </p><p>She snorted and raised her eyebrows. “A break from what? All you two have done is play video games all day! It’ll be good to get out of the house!” Gently she poked him in the side. </p><p> </p><p>“No leaving the house. I like video games better.” He whined and he shoved his shoes on. </p><p> </p><p>“Whatever you say, Sonic. Here’s some money- it’ll probably be a little more than you need, so if you end up doing anything, use it responsibly. Alright?”</p><p> </p><p>He nodded, taking the list and the couple twenties from Amy. She smiled again with a giggle.. </p><p> </p><p>“Okay then, I’ll see you in a few hours then.” She said before softly closing the door. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic groaned and looked over at the bed on the other side of the room. The blankets were sprawled out and bunched up twists, making him wonder what Shadow had been doing yesterday. </p><p> </p><p>He leaned over and poked the lump. “Hey Shads, wake up.” Though there wasn’t a response. “...Shadow?” The hero questioned, realizing that there was nothing underneath the blankets but a pillow. </p><p> </p><p>He furrowed his eyebrows, concerned. <em> Did he just leave? Without telling anyone…? </em> Sonic stepped back and noticed that his backpack was still there, though there was still no Shadow. Maybe he went to the bathroom?</p><p> </p><p>“What do you want, Faker?” His ears flicked over to the monotone voice, and there he was. Sitting on the floor for some reason? Leaning up against the bed with his foot resting on the wall. The ebony hedgehog looked like he had been sitting there for a while, absentmindedly scrolling through his phone. </p><p> </p><p><em> Oh. That was kind of weird…guess he’s an early bird? </em> He thought to himself, but didn’t think much of it. </p><p> </p><p>“Amy said we have to go do some shopping.” He mumbled, scratching his head. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow sighed and stood up, yawning. “Okay, we can go.” He looked over at Sonic expectantly. Thinking back on it, he could have sworn he hadn’t heard Shadow go to bed last night either. It was probably nothing to worry about, though. Shadow was not someone he could make sense of all the time. </p><p>He smiled to himself, before grabbing his bag and nodding in agreement. </p><p> </p><p>“Alright then!”</p><p>***</p><p>As the two hedgehogs hauled the bags full of groceries down the bustling city street, Sonic’s mind wandered back to what it was going to be like coming back home. He missed Tails, even though they still texted pretty frequently, it would certainly be nice to see him again... but what would Shadow do? Would he go off and go on some other G.U.N mission again? Or just fall off the face of the Earth for a few weeks like he’d done before? He glanced over to his ebony rival, who was carrying a similar load in his hands.</p><p> </p><p> He grimaced slightly, noticing the dark circles under Shadow’s eyes, but didn’t say anything. At the very least he seemed to be less tired than a few days ago. The hero shoved one of the bags over his shoulder as he quickly moved out of the way of a group of people.</p><p> </p><p>“Hey Shads?” He asked, skirting past the wave pedestrians walking the opposite direction. </p><p> </p><p>“Yeah?” The Ultimate Lifeform replied, turning to look at him. </p><p> </p><p>“What’s the first thing you’re going to do when we get back?” </p><p> </p><p>He looked down at his feet and turned his head to the side, not sure how to answer that. </p><p> </p><p>“Probably the same thing I always do, I suppose.” </p><p> </p><p>“What’s that?” He questioned. </p><p> </p><p>“Go to sleep.” He answered, sighing. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic grinned, kicking some pebbles off the sidewalk. “Yeah, that would probably be a good idea for me too.” </p><p> </p><p>“I was thinking though… after we go home, you want to have a race sometime?” He cocked his head thoughtfully. </p><p> </p><p>“Didn’t we already do that, though?” Shadow furrowed his eyebrows. “Feel like losing again so soon?” </p><p> </p><p>The hero rolled his eyes and snorted at the cocky grin the agent gave him. “Yeah<em> , </em> but I mean a <em> real </em> race. Like one that lasts a couple hours or something, and <em> without </em>obstacles in the way this time.” He shuddered in remembrance a few days prior.</p><p> </p><p>Shadow smiled at the thought. “...Yeah, alright.” He agreed, shoving the grocery bag into his other hand. </p><p> </p><p>“And when you lose, you have to buy us both chili dogs.” Sonic gave him a confidant smirk. </p><p>“You’re gonna go broke at that rate, hedgehog. I won’t get beaten by a dumbass like you” He replied, thumping the blur softly on the head. Shadow stepped over a broken bottle that lay on the cement in front of him. </p><p> </p><p>“Oh, you’d be surprised at how many times I’ve won races! Probably have more trophies than you have edgy comebacks! Which is probably quite a lot I’d assume.”</p><p> </p><p>“The only thing you’d win at is a…” he trailed off, stopping to look over at the flashy posters in front of him. </p><p> </p><p>“...clown contest…” The agent finished, still not paying very close attention. </p><p> </p><p>The cobalt hedgehog cocked his head, glancing at the building they had stopped in front of. A movie theatre. He smiled, noticing how Shadow was staring intently at the cover pictures. </p><p> </p><p>He shoved his hand in his quills and pulled out the wad of money left over from the groceries. A couple of tens and loose change, more than enough. His smile spread a little more.</p><p> </p><p>Sonic walked over and put his elbow on his rivals shoulder, making him jump slightly in surprise. </p><p> </p><p>“Hey loser, wanna watch a movie or something?” He asked, peering over at the posters as well. </p><p> </p><p>He snorted and shook his head. “No, I was just wondering who would <em> want </em> to watch something like that.” Though he didn’t take his eyes off of the ad in front of him, showing a young woman screaming in terror in a darkly lit room. Average horror movie stuff. </p><p> </p><p>“Why? You think it's gonna be too scary?” He said in a singsong voice. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow scowled at him and narrowed his eyes. “Nothing I haven’t seen before, Faker. I was more concerned about you, I don’t want to have to drag you out in tears.” </p><p> </p><p>“Pfft, yeah right! There’s <em> no </em> way that's happening. I bet that you're just too chicken.” Sonic challenged. He shoved a wadded up five at the cashier, and took the tickets without turning away from Shadow’s gaze.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m pretty sure both of us know that I’m a hedgehog.”</p><p> </p><p>“I promise you, there is <em> nothing </em> about this that’ll be scary!” </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Sonic had apparently lied, because there<em> was </em> something scary in the movie. Not to him, really, but it was scary to Sonic. It was about what he expected for a low budget film. Lots of jump scares and loud noises to try and freak you out, pretty basic. At some points during the beginning he had to shove his hand over his rival’s mouth to keep him from laughing.</p><p> </p><p>That was, until the lake scenes. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow was<em> kind of </em> impressed, because despite being a god awful movie, at least it was <em> trying </em> to be original. Or at least, just combining different horror tropes, but beggars can’t be choosers. At the very least they had decent popcorn.</p><p> </p><p>Clearly, the hero didn’t agree.</p><p> </p><p>It wasn’t really a secret that Sonic <em> hates </em> water more than anything else, but he still refuses to admit to anyone that he’s scared of it. He always made up lousy excuses for why he couldn’t come to the beach, or the pool, or anywhere else really, with his friends. Usually they involved not wanting to get a sunburn (despite being covered in fur) or something equally unprepared and stupid. Though Shadow wasn’t the <em> closest </em> to Sonic, even he knew the extent of the blue hedgehog’s aqua phobia. In fact, he was pretty sure nearly everyone he came into contact with found out about pretty quickly.</p><p> </p><p>Despite how much he tried to hide it, the agent noticed the abrupt change in his rival’s demeanor, even in the dimly lit room. He watched as characters started getting dragged to the bottom of a lake, thrashing and screaming for dear life, and inwardly cringed.</p><p> </p><p>The Ultimate Lifeform glanced over to see his rival had pressed himself to the back of the seat, an uneasy smile plastered on his face. His running commentary that had quietly been going on throughout the length of the movie had abruptly stopped. </p><p> </p><p>“Are you gonna be okay?” He whispered, leaning over to look at Sonic. </p><p> </p><p>“I’m fine!” He whispered hastily. Sonic’s hands were very tightly clenched against his arms. Shadow wasn’t very convinced. </p><p> </p><p>“Are you sure? We can leave if you want to.”  </p><p> </p><p>“No! I’m fine! Everything is cool!” He slurped his drink through a straw, almost choking when he was startled by a loud noise. </p><p> </p><p>“You want me to hold your hand or something at least? You just seem a little… jumpy.” </p><p> </p><p>“What are you, my mom? I’m not <em> five, </em> I don’t need to hold someone’s hand just because I’m slightly freaked out right now <em> - </em> n-not that I’m scared of a little w-water or anything.” He stammered quickly, gingerly pushing the hedgehog’s outstretched hand away. “S-shut up and just watch the movie, I’ll be fi-.” </p><p> </p><p>“AaaAAAaaaAAAAaAaaAhHH! NO! I’m not ready to- mmmaaaughh.” A woman on the screen screeched as she was pulled underwater, her yells of terror muffled. Her arms failed as she struggled to drag herself up, but to no avail. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic’s eyes grew wider than saucers, slapping his hand on top of Shadow’s without taking his eyes off of the picture in front of him. </p><p> </p><p>“Never mind. I’m scared of a little water.” He squeaked feebly. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow snorted in amusement, biting the inside of his cheek to stop from saying <em> told you this was a dumb idea </em>. But he didn’t say anything else, and he didn’t complain whenever Sonic would nearly cut off the circulation in his hand from being freaked out. </p><p> </p><p>The rest of the movie played out with little issues. Whenever something remotely scary happened Sonic would suddenly become extremely interested in looking at his hand, or the groceries that were sitting next to them. He seemed to be a bit more relaxed than before, but by no means was he calm. </p><p> </p><p>They eventually walked out of the theater unscathed, except for Sonic’s ego, of course. </p><p>“See Shadow? N-not that bad at all!” He boasted, giving his rival a confident grin despite his slightly wobbly legs. </p><p> </p><p>“Yes, clearly you are the pinnacle of fearlessness.” The black hedgehog replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes. </p><p> </p><p>“Pffft, you may be joking, but deep down you know it’s true.” He pulled a face at Shadow which made him laugh. </p><p> </p><p>Though he would never admit it, he <em> did </em>know that it was true. Maybe not in those exact words, but he certainly was pretty courageous. Sonic would hurl himself in front of pretty much any danger someone threw at him to protect the people he loved, or pretty much anyone for that matter. He was a lot braver than Shadow would ever be.</p><p> </p><p>He glanced down at his feet for a moment. It probably wasn’t very fair to act like that, even if Sonic knew he was just teasing. For his age, he certainly had a lot of weight on his shoulders. He knew the extent better than most, though. </p><p>“Hey…” He started, looking up to look at his rival. “You want to get some ice cream? I think your feats of bravery deserve some rewards.” </p><p> </p><p>The blue hedgehog giggled. “Okay, I suppose just this once I’ll accept some.” He gave Shadow another goofy grin. </p><p> </p><p>“I mean, I guess of all the stupid things you <em> could </em> be scared of, it’s not even that dumb. I guess it <em> kinda </em> makes sense…” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic studied his ally with a softer smile on his face, and Shadow could almost feel his insides melting from the affection. <em> Now is </em> <b> <em>not</em> </b> <em> the time, brain. </em></p><p> </p><p>A few seconds later the hero snorted, returning to his more usual demeanor. “Whoa there buddy, it kinda sounded like you said something <em> nice </em>to me.” He joked. </p><p> </p><p>“Oh no I think you misunderstood. Its still <em> dumb, </em> don’t get me wrong. It’s just <em> less </em> dumb than some of the other ones you could have had. Still like… 85% stupid.” </p><p> </p><p>“I’ll take that.” He nodded in agreement. </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hello once again! I hope you have enjoyed so far! </p><p>This IS still kinda a first draft, so pleaSE tell me if you think there's anything I can improve on it's really helpful!  &lt;3</p><p>Also thank you for all of the comments and kudos they really mean a lot to me especially considering this fluffy trash (Ｔ▽Ｔ)</p><p>Thank you for reading! I hope to see you again soon!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Faker.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Shadow does some thinking on the past.</p><p> ...Along with quite a bit of gay panic</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p><p>After a few more minutes of aimlessly searching the crowded streets, they eventually spotted a small ice cream parlor sitting in the corner of a block of buildings. </p><p> </p><p>The summer air had started to cool off, a breeze blew past Shadow’s face as the two made their way across the sidewalks. The glow from restaurant windows lighting up the path. He regretted not grabbing a hoodie before they left. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic was chattering on about one of his latest adventures, though the agent wasn’t paying very close attention. </p><p> </p><p>He was more focused on something else. Something a little bit more… distracting to say the least. Sonic always got the biggest smile when he talked about things like that. The way that he would laugh at his own jokes, or the way his eyes would light up when he remembered something exciting. Even the way he <em> walked </em> made Shadow smile, the way he almost skipped down the street. It made his heart ache. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow kept looking at the hero, watching him giggle to himself as he gushed about some race he’d gone to a few months ago. A soft sigh left his lips. It was really going to hurt to have to leave.</p><p> </p><p>“Oh gosh, Shadow! It was so much fun! You <em> have </em>to come see it with me sometime, you’d love it.” </p><p> </p><p>He poked the agent in the shoulder, snapping him out of his thoughts. </p><p> </p><p>“Hm? No way Faker, I’ve seen it before.” </p><p> </p><p>He rolled his eyes. “Yeah right! I doubt you even listened to a word I said.”</p><p> </p><p>“What?! Yes I was! I was listening!” </p><p> </p><p>“Oh yeah? What was I talking about then?”</p><p> </p><p>“Um, some kind of race you lost at or something?” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic laughed into his hand. “That wasn’t even in the same<em> ballpark </em>, loser!” </p><p> </p><p>“Was too! And even if it wasn’t, they probably all just blend together since you never shut your mouth.” </p><p> </p><p>“Awww, stop lying Shadow! You were staring off into space with a goofy look on your face.” </p><p> </p><p>“Was not!” </p><p> </p><p>“Did too! You were <em> smilingggg </em>” </p><p> </p><p>Shadow rolled his eyes and snorted. “Nope. No way.” </p><p> </p><p>“You’re still doing it, Shaaaads.” Sonic smiled at him with a big grin on his face. Clearly he was enjoying this. </p><p> </p><p>“Pffft. It’s just because it's amusing to watch you make a fool of yourself.” He replied through a huff. </p><p> </p><p>“Whatever you say, buddy. I like it when you smile. You have a nice one.” </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> ...What? </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Did he hear that correctly? </em>
</p><p> </p><p>The agent blinked in confusion for a few seconds. His brain felt a twenty year old Windows computers twenty year old Windows computer as it desperately tried to comprehend the sentence that just left his rival’s- <em>his</em> <em>crush’s </em>mouth.</p><p> </p><p> Did he really just hear that, or was his gay ass so desperate for affection that he just made that up? There was probably a perfectly good explanation for that comment, but he couldn’t come up with a <em> single </em> one. He honestly did not know, but either way it still made him go bright red. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow stared down at his feet, feeling slightly out of commision. <em> Is this what it's like to be brain-dead…? </em> He thought to himself. He couldn’t tell if Sonic had noticed that he had single handedly shattered the poor hedgehog’s brain into pieces, and he didn’t dare look at the hero’s face. </p><p> </p><p>“O-oh, would you look at that! We made it! What kinda ice cream do you think you’re gonna get?” </p><p> </p><p>The ebony hedgie was snapped out of his self imposed coma at the sound of Sonic’s voice. He was still just as chipper and unfazed as before, so<em> clearly </em> he hadn’t noticed. Shadow couldn’t tell if that was a relief or a disappointment. </p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>“Hey look, that place is still open. How much cash do we still have?” Sonic nudged him with his shoulder and motioned to a small ice cream parlor a few feet away. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow shoved the rapidly shrinking wad of dollars that still remained as his head swam. <em> Maybe he says that to everyone? Aren’t most straight guys kind of clueless anyway? Especially Sonic?! Is he even straight?! I don’t know! Plus, he flirts with people all the time! What makes you think that you’re special, idiot?! You’re probably creeping him out right now, honestly! Plus, he has a girlfriend??? You stupid home wrecking dumbas- </em></p><p> </p><p>Suddenly he was snapped out of his thoughts as he realized Sonic had started talking about something again. This time he had no way to pretend he had been listening, in fact, he was pretty sure he had spent the last three minutes in an entirely different plane of existence. </p><p> </p><p>“I wonder what Knuckles is up to right now. He doesn’t really do a whole lot when the world isn’t on the verge of collapse or destruction, I guess. Probably sitting with the Master Emerald, or.... I dunno… doing weed or something?” </p><p> </p><p>As Shadow tried to pretend he hadn’t gone into a small coma for the last few seconds, he looked over to see the hero trying to guess what a guardian who lives on a floating island would do in a day. </p><p> </p><p>“ I don’t think people describe that as “doing” weed, Faker- wait...Knuckles…? You mean the red echidna?” </p><p> </p><p>He nodded. “I guess you probably wouldn’t have talked to him before, huh? But, yeah, that's Knuckles. You’d probably get along with him. He’s quite a no-nonsense kind of guy. And also sometimes he beats me up.” </p><p> </p><p>Shadow snorted. “Yeah, that does sound like the kind of person I would associate with.” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic grinned as he pushed the door to the shop open with his hand. “Yeah, yeah I get it. You big meanie.” </p><p> </p><p>The ice cream parlor was fairly crowded, despite almost being dusk. Many of the tables that lined the windows were occupied by chattering kids, along with a few couples. The checkered floors shone under Shadow’s feet, squeaking as the two made their way up to the counter. </p><p> </p><p>“Could I get one scoop of bubblegum please?” The hero beamed up at the girl sitting behind the counter. </p><p> </p><p>“Of course! Anything else?” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic looked expectantly at his rival, who glanced at the overwhelmingly long list of flavors on the wall. </p><p> </p><p>“Uh, could I have some vanilla I guess?” He said hesitantly. </p><p> </p><p>The employee nodded and turned around to grab some cones. </p><p> </p><p>“Really? Vanilla? Out of <em> all </em>of those flavors you had to choose the boringest one?” The blue hedgehog whispered as he lightly elbowed Shadow in the ribs. </p><p> </p><p>“At least it’s an actual flavor and not just some glowing blue goo full of stale bubblegum, Faker. And there is <em> no </em> way that's an actual word.” He wrinkled up his nose. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic blew a raspberry at him. “So what? Glowing goo is still <em> significantly </em>better than vanilla.” He huffed.</p><p> </p><p>“What do you have against vanilla, Sonic? Who hurt you?” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic giggled. “No one! I’m just saying-” </p><p> </p><p>“Okay! Here you are!” </p><p> </p><p>The girl behind the counter set the ice creams in front of them, cutting off their bickering. </p><p> </p><p>“Thanks a lot!” He smiled and held out the wad of slightly torn bills for her. She shook her head. </p><p> </p><p>“Actually, this one’s on the house. You two have fun!” The girl winked before turning to help another customer. </p><p> </p><p>The two boys blinked, looking at each other in confusion. </p><p> </p><p>“What was that for?” Shadow asked. Sonic shrugged. </p><p> </p><p>“I don’t know, but hey. If it’s free, it’s free.” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic led them through the crowd near the entrance to one of the slightly more secluded walls. There was a small table right next to the window that he had apparently decided was the best one for them. </p><p> </p><p>As Shadow observed the ice cream store, he noticed that he had decided to grab his food with the same arm with all of Ms. Rose’s groceries on. He <em> also </em> noticed that there was a <em> reason </em> he held them both in the same hand- his other one was still holding Sonic’s. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Jesus Christ. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>And his heart stopped for a few seconds as he just stood there, staging. He was still holding on to his rival’s hand, so lightly he hadn't even noticed he had forgotten to let go. Silently, he thanked whoever would listen for making gloves such a popular trend right now, because he was sure his hand was sweating. </p><p> </p><p>“...Sonic, I’m pretty sure I know the reason she was looking at us like that.” He began cautiously. </p><p> </p><p>“Why? You think that she was charmed by my beauty?” </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Ah. He hasn’t noticed yet. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>“Uh, no. Not exactly.” He said flatly rolling his eyes still firmly stuck on their hands. He gestured with his slightly free-er arm. With a short glance to his rival, Sonic followed the agent’s movement down to their hands. </p><p> </p><p>And just stood there, staring. Shadow didn’t dare look over to see what kind of a face he must be making. </p><p> </p><p>“Oh. You’re still holding my hand.”</p><p> </p><p>Inwardly, he died a little. He was doomed. <em> He’s probably about to snatch his arm away and call you a creep or a perv or whatever else he could think of and the worst part is that he’s probably right and this is all your fault and now he’s gonna storm out and never talk to you agai- </em></p><p> </p><p> “She probably thought we were on a date or something” He observed.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> ... What?  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>This was<em> not </em> the outcome Shadow was expecting to happen. Maybe he just didn’t see much of a big deal with it, yeah. That was probably it. Sonic had a bunch of friends, girls, boys, and anyone in between He was probably more confident in stuff like this, probably had done it before. And it wasn’t that weird to hold your friend’s hand, right? People did that all the time, so why was Shadow’s heart beating so fast? Maybe Sonic would just find it funny. Maybe he’d just laugh it off and say, <em> well, yeah, but neither of us are </em> <b> <em>actually</em> </b> <em> gay, right? </em>And somehow Shadow couldn’t tell which outcome he found worse. </p><p> </p><p>Because yeah, it was a normal thing to hold hands. It was a normal thing to be mistaken for something they weren't. It wasn’t anything special, it didn’t <em> mean </em> anything. </p><p> </p><p>But it did to him. </p><p> </p><p>Oh god, it meant a lot more to him than he’d originally thought.</p><p> </p><p>He wanted to shove him off, quit while he was ahead. Before Sonic would have a chance to ask too many questions, have a chance to rip his hand back himself. Though he made no attempt to make the boy stop.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m pretty sure that you grabbed onto <em> my </em> hand.” The words fell out of his mouth before he had a chance to stop them. He could feel the heat rising in his cheeks. This wasn’t good. Part of him wanted to run out and never look at Sonic ever again. The other half was <em> begging </em>him to just stay here a little longer, enjoy it because this was never going to happen again. Because in a few seconds he was going to be mocked, ridiculed, and shamed, either by his friend or himself. Whichever one came first. But still his hand didn’t move. </p><p> </p><p>“Are you telling me that you’ve been-<em> we’ve </em>been holding hands ever since we left the movie theater?” </p><p> </p><p>“It appears like it.” He couldn’t turn his head to face the voice speaking, laced with slight confusion.</p><p> </p><p>“And neither of us noticed this <em> entire </em> time?”</p><p> </p><p>“Uh huh.” Inwardly, he gulped. It was time to prepare for the worst.</p><p> </p><p>“Even though it's been like an hour or two?” </p><p> </p><p>Shadow nodded. His mouth had gone dry.</p><p>“Hmm. Wait- you offered, so technically you <em> did </em> hold my hand!” He grinned as he pulled them along. His usual cheery nature seeping back into his tone. And for what seemed like the hundredth time in the last few hours, Shadow was confused.</p><p> </p><p>He felt very perplexed, so the agent refused to comment on that one, though he still felt his cheeks get warm. It wasn’t like he could have answered if he wanted, his mind had gone completely blank.</p><p> </p><p>He let himself get pulled along after his rival, vigorously chattering about how next time he’d make Shadow get a flavor that was <em> actually </em> good, at least according to him. He didn’t know what to say, so he just nodded, his limbs felt like jello. And eventually, Sonic untangled their arms so they could sit down and eat their ice cream. They joked and messed around with each other for a while, the nervous aching still bubbling in his chest. The longer they sat, the less prominent the feeling got, but he still couldn’t shake the absence that ghosted his hand.</p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>An hour had passed, and Shadow’s inner panic seemed to have died down for the most part. The pair of hedgehogs roamed the thinning crowds as the sun had begun to set, the pale pinks and oranges dusting the skyline in front of them. </p><p> </p><p>Heading back to Amy’s home was a little disappointing, he had to admit. He’d had a nice day, though those didn’t seem to be as rare as they had used to be. The agent smiled, looking over to his rival. Their conversation had hit another lull, though a comfortable one. The silence filled by car alarms and distant construction. Though he didn’t mind the commotion that came from the city as much as he had thought. </p><p> </p><p>In fact, he’d come to rather enjoy listening to the hustle and bustle of traffic throughout the day. A few months ago he would have hated it- the noise, the crowds. </p><p> </p><p>He went out of his way to avoid situations like this usually, but for whatever reason he hadn’t been feeling very anxious at all recently. Though he had a feeling he knew why. </p><p> </p><p>That was what bothered him the most. He’d gotten soft, he must have. He’d always appreciated Sonic’s company, even if he didn’t always show it very well. He respected the hero a lot more than he cared to say, and it seemed that his interest in him had only gotten worse. </p><p> </p><p>The past few months had been awfully strange for him. He seemed to run into Sonic everywhere he went, on G.U.N missions and on his own alike. Recently, the hero had seemed to have gotten very determined to get to know him, much to Shadow’s annoyance. </p><p> </p><p>Maybe it wasn’t exactly an annoyance per say, but to be woken up at any ungodly hour of the morning to get asked on runs and adventures was not really his cup of tea. Even if he eventually obliged nearly every time. </p><p> </p><p>It confused him, though. Why had Sonic decided that they needed to become anything more than allies in battle? Why was he so determined to become friends? It scared him quite a bit at first, but eventually he became used to this routine. Every few days or so he’d get a knock on his door, and be greeted by a very chipper hedgehog asking to come inside. </p><p> </p><p>Sometimes they’d go on runs or spar, other times it was to go check out old ruins and zones he’d never seen before. It was entertaining, sure, but he enjoyed Sonic’s company more than anything else. He had a strange aura of calm around him, as ridiculous as that might seem considering who he was thinking about, and honestly it still perplexed Shadow. There was something about him that made him feel safe, or at least safer to an extent. Sonic was the only person outside of G.U.N he’d stop being so tense and upright around.</p><p> </p><p>Everything had been going all right, for a while at least. Rouge was very proud of him for making a new friend, or a “colleague” as he refused to call Sonic that. Being friends was not a term that Shadow threw around casually. He was pretty happy too. It had been a long time since he had had so much to do, or so much to say, honestly. </p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>But he made a mistake. </p><p> </p><p>He wasn’t sure exactly when, or why, but at some point along the way he realized that he cared about Sonic a little bit more than he intended. </p><p> </p><p>And it was absolutely terrifying. </p><p> </p><p>Every time he saw that dumb blue idiot his heart did back flips, and it made him want to leap into a lake. Why did he always have to mess everything up? His smile, his dumb laugh and his even dumber jokes, something about it made Shadow melt whenever he was close. He couldn’t pin point the moment it started, but he knew the moment he realized it. </p><p> </p><p>He could barely look Sonic in the eyes, barely left the house even, because he was absolutely positive the hero would find out and would never look at him the same. He’d just get shock and disgust. Shadow would fling himself into the face of any threat, except this one. He had never been one showing his feelings, and this was certainly something he would not risk losing. If...he even had something he could lose. </p><p> </p><p>Sure, they hung out quite a bit, but they weren’t exactly close. He knew deep down that Sonic probably thought he was expendable. They couldn’t even go one conversation without insulting each other, even if it was all jokes. Or… maybe it wasn’t. Maybe it had all just been some elaborate plan to make Shadow look like an idiot. Maybe Sonic absolutely hated him the whole time and everyone knew about it from the beginning and that was why all of his friends looked at him weird is because they already knew and Sonic was just messing with him-</p><p> </p><p>Okay, hold on. That train of thought was clearly not going anywhere.</p><p>Either way, Sonic had people he could count on, hell, pretty much everyone he meets adores him anyway. Why would he need to keep around a pathetic coward with only two friends? One of which isn’t even made out of flesh? </p><p> </p><p>Even then, he knew there was no outcome that would end nicely. Shadow could either tell the truth and get his heart ripped out all over again...or he could run away. </p><p>So he chose to run. </p><p> </p><p>Not literally, of course, but he ran nonetheless. Stopped answering the door, stopped talking and playing into Sonic’s jokes, stopped leaving his house unless he absolutely needed to. He refused to talk to anyone but Rouge, took on far too many missions, and blew up at anything Sonic said. </p><p> </p><p>He shut down almost entirely, hiding behind his walls that the hero had so desperately tried to break down. Glared at everything he saw. Shadow spat almost every word he said. He tried to make every insult, every comment, every eye roll, cut as deep as he could make them. Wanted it to hurt so everyone would leave him alone again, so he wouldn’t have to go through this all over again.</p><p> </p><p>Because at least then Sonic would have a reason to hate him. </p><p> </p><p>At least then, he could confidently say that Sonic would never love him the way he loved Sonic.</p><p> </p><p>As expected, the hero of Mobius did not take to this aggressive persona very well. They barely spoke to each other anymore, but when they did it ended in fighting. Sonic’s friends seemed to be just as confused with this as he was. It was as if someone had flipped a switch. The slightly standoffish and a little bit shy Shadow had suddenly gotten hostile and downright insulting. Until one day, he crossed a line. </p><p> </p><p>Fighting with Sonic was one thing, but picking a fight with his brother, now that would surely get him to hate Shadow’s guts. And he was right. </p><p> </p><p>“What the fuck has gotten into you lately, Shadow?! Honestly you’ve been acting like a dick for weeks!”</p><p> </p><p>It hurt.</p><p> </p><p>“Nothing has gotten into me, Faker. I’m just sick of dealing with you and your pathetic excuses for friends!”</p><p> </p><p>But the alternative would hurt even worse.</p><p> </p><p>“Bullshit! We both know that’s not true, so stop pretending and just tell me what’s wrong!” </p><p>Right? </p><p> </p><p>“Don’t make me laugh! You don’t know a damn thing about me, Faker.” </p><p>Right?</p><p> </p><p>“You know what? I’m done trying to deal with your shit, alright? Happy? Tell me if you ever decide to stop acting like a complete ass. And in the meantime, if you even look his fucking direction again I swear to god I’ll break your kneecaps.” </p><p>I guess we know which one of us is actually a Faker, huh?</p><p> </p><p>And that was it. </p><p> </p><p>That was the last time he’d talked to Sonic in months, at least until G.U.N had forced him to look him dead in the eyes all over again. He was positive that the minute they saw each other he would have gotten punched in the face. He certainly deserved it.</p><p> </p><p>He almost welcomed it.  </p><p> </p><p>But instead he was greeted with a sloppy grin and an eye roll. Like none of it had ever happened. </p><p> </p><p>He spent the next few hours trekking through the woods in a daze, barely able to tell if he was speaking or not. Had he really forgotten? Or worse, just… ignored it? He was sure they bickered, but there was not the seeping rage and hate that he expected. It wasn’t what he deserved. It was as if he was just annoyed that Shadow wasn’t laughing at his jokes or something.</p><p> </p><p>It really was like it had never happened at all, huh?</p><p> </p><p>And somehow that made it a hundred times worse. </p><p> </p><p>He was filled with so much regret, so much guilt, and fear that he didn’t know what to do. He didn’t dare bring it up, though. Terrified that he would mess it all up again, that he’d snap whatever feeble ties that he still clung to and it would all end. </p><p> </p><p>But that was what he wanted, right?</p><p> </p><p>He knew from the beginning that it was a terrible idea to fall in love with his rival, and he was almost entirely sure that he’d burned that bridge in the worst way he could muster. And yet, still somehow Sonic gave him another chance. </p><p> </p><p>He would do everything in his power to keep it the way it should be. Rivals, maybe allies in battle. Nothing more, nothing less. </p><p> </p><p> He’d let himself down one too many times, and he couldn’t do it again. </p><p> </p><p>Even if it hurt worse with every passing second, even if the bitter ache in his chest screamed louder and louder with every day, every hour, every minute. Because he was a coward. He would never say what he so desperately wanted to. He refused to break his heart all over again.</p><p> </p><p>Shadow would figure out a way to make things go back to the way they were before, even if he annihilated himself trying. </p><p> </p><p>And if he couldn’t… he’d leave before he got the chance to fuck up again.  </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>hello once again my friends!</p><p>Things are about to get a *little* bit more angsty but nothing crazy....or probably that angst-y at all know that I think about it...</p><p>Until next week!!!(hopefully)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. The Emerald Coast Shines Its Approval</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Sonic encounters a Karen. It does not end well. </p><p>Luckily, he has a friend to help.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The walk home had been very silent. At first he just assumed that they had run out of things to say, but it seemed to stretch too long. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic glanced over at his rival, but it didn’t really clear anything up. He was looking down at his feet, eyebrows slightly furrowed. He looked a little glum, which the hero didn’t like to see. The tired look in his eyes hadn’t gone away like Sonic had hoped they would either. </p><p> </p><p><em> Do Ultimate Lifeforms need to sleep? </em> He wondered. <em> Even if they don’t, he still looks like he could use a break… </em></p><p> </p><p>He sighed, shifting his attention to the darkening clouds above their heads. It looked like it was going to rain. </p><p> </p><p>“Hey, Shads.” He said softly, poking a striped arm with his hand. </p><p> </p><p>“Hm?” </p><p> </p><p>“Oh, okay. I thought I’d lost ya there for a second! Whatcha thinkin’ about?”</p><p> </p><p>“Uh-” </p><p> </p><p>Suddenly a ear piercing wail cut him off mid thought, making the two boys nearly leap out of their skin. </p><p> </p><p>“MoooOoOOOOm!! MooOOOoOOm!!! Where are you?!” The voice howled through sobs. </p><p> </p><p>They looked at each other in confusion, quickly walking in the direction of the crying. </p><p> </p><p>They turned a corner to see a small raccoon huddled up on a wall of an alleyway. Snot and tears all over its face. It couldn’t have been more than seven or eight years old, his eyes were red and watery. He could have sworn Shadow said <em> gross </em>under his breath. How heartless!</p><p> </p><p>“Hey hey hey! Calm down buddy!” Sonic said gingerly as he kneeled down next to the kid. “Whatcha doing out here all by yourself?” </p><p> </p><p>“I- I can’t find m-my mom. She told me not to play in the alleys when it gets dark b-but was bein’ real careful and all… but I can’t find her no more, Mister.” He sniffed. </p><p> </p><p>“Do you know where she might have gone?” Shadow asked, his eyebrows creased. </p><p> </p><p>“H-her store’s nearby I think. I-I dunno though. W-what if I never see her again?” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic gave the kid a soft smile and held out his hand. “Of course you will! Come on, let’s go find her, okay? I’m sure she’s worried sick, right Shadow?” </p><p> </p><p>He gave a quick nod as the two stood up. The hero felt another grin slide across his face as he watched the agent help the raccoon off of the wall. He just rolled his eyes in response. </p><p> </p><p>“Can you tell us which way her store is?” Sonic asked with a smile. </p><p> </p><p>The kid nodded and pointed off to the left. “I-I’m pretty sure it’s that way. U-usually I don’t come ‘round over here or anythin’ s-so I don’t really know.”</p><p> </p><p>“It’s alright. We should at least try, it’s getting pretty late.” Shadow replied, grimacing at the dark clouds hanging over the sky. </p><p> </p><p>As the three began walking down the road, Sonic immediately started cracking jokes in order to get the kid to laugh. He seemed to glow in delight when the raccoon giggled at some of his puns. He looked over and grinned when Shadow snorted and rolled his eyes. </p><p> </p><p>“Say… you look kinda familiar to me for some reason, Mister! What’s your name?” </p><p> </p><p>“Oh, me? My name's Sonic! Sonic the Hedgehog!” He grinned and stuck out a hand, which the kid shook, mirroring his expression.</p><p> </p><p>“What’s his name, Mister Sonic?” He asked, pointing over to the agent. </p><p> </p><p>“His name’s Shadow.” </p><p> </p><p>“Hmmmm. That’s a funny name! I wish I had a cool name like that!” </p><p> </p><p>He snorted in amusement, watching the back of Shadow’s head. He was walking a little further ahead than them, stopping to ask some people if they had seen the boy’s parents. He watched as the ebony hedgehog pointed back at them, asking a couple who shook their heads. </p><p> </p><p>“Why do ya keep lookin’ at Mister Shadow like that? Is he your <em> boyfriend? </em>” He whispered quietly, looking up at Sonic with big eyes and a grin. </p><p> </p><p>He nearly choked on his own spit. <em>I WISH-</em> “What? Nahh. He’s just my buddy. Good, good buddy. Buddy ol’ pal.” </p><p> </p><p>“He’s <em> not </em>?! Aww, that's sad. Mister Shadow seems real quiet, and you're real loud! I think you’d be nice together.” </p><p> </p><p>“...Thanks I guess…?” </p><p> </p><p>“If you’re not his boyfriend, can I be?! I like his spikey things! They’re really neat!” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic giggled and looked at his feet. “ Uuuh, I think you’re a little young for him. I don’t really think Shads is really interested in all that sappy stuff anyways. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Siiiiiigh. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>“Booooo.” </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Same. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>Shadow was now talking to a man working at a restaurant a little farther down the road, he nodded and pointed off in one direction. The agent thanked them and made his way back over to where they were standing.</p><p> </p><p>“Did you find anything?” </p><p> </p><p>“Yes, I was told his mother works in the plant nursery down the street.”</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah! That <em> is </em>momma! She works in the plant store!”</p><p> </p><p>Sonic pulled them both behind him, walking down the emptying road a little faster than before. </p><p> </p><p>“Say, you never did tell us what your name is, bud.” </p><p> </p><p>“Oooh! My name’s Davie!” </p><p> </p><p>“Well it was a real pleasure to meet you, Davie! You were really brave today! Maybe someday you’ll be an adventurer like us!”</p><p> </p><p>“You go on adventures?! That sounds like fun! Do you get to beat up bad guys?!”</p><p> </p><p>“Yup! All the time, in fact!”</p><p> </p><p>“Wow! You guys are real cool! Thanks for helping me find my momma, I’m sure she’ll be happy I’m home!”</p><p> </p><p>They approached a small plant nursery, a short raccoon worriedly pacing around outside the front. </p><p> </p><p>“Oh my gosh Davie! There you are! I was worried sick!” The woman pulled her son into a warm hug. “You go inside now dear, go wash up, alright?” </p><p> </p><p>She nudged him off as he pushed open the doors and slipped inside. “See you around, Mister Sonic and Mister Shadow!” </p><p> </p><p>She stood up, with a relieved face. “Oh my! Thank goodness that you found-” her face turned sour as she looked them both up and down. </p><p> </p><p>“Wait, are you... Sonic the Hedgehog?” She said through narrowing eyes.</p><p> </p><p>He laughed uneasily. “Er, uh huh! The very same!” </p><p> </p><p>“The one who defeated Perfect Chaos?” </p><p> </p><p>“...yeah?” </p><p> </p><p>She furrowed her eyebrows and glowered at them. “What on <em> Earth </em> are you hooligans doing in this place?! Planning on destroying our damn city all over again? We’ve barely cleaned up from your last visit!” The woman spat. </p><p> </p><p>“W-what? I-I did the best that I could-” </p><p> </p><p>“Who do you think you are?! Calling yourselves heroes while you prance around the place like our lives are just some joke!”</p><p> </p><p>“No! I-I don’t think that at all! I was just trying to stop Eggman-” </p><p> </p><p>“Sonic.”</p><p> </p><p>“I don’t want to hear another word from you! You're supposed to be a protector and yet everywhere you go you just bring death and chaos!” </p><p> </p><p>“Wait, y-you don’t understand! I would <em> never </em>let that happen on purpose!” he felt his hands clench and his ears flatten to his head. His whole body seemed to be shaking as he struggled to hold back tears. </p><p> </p><p>“<em> Sonic </em>.” </p><p> </p><p>“You’re a disgusting excuse for a hero! What are you doing right now, playing around with my son?! People are dying at the hands of that villain and you aren’t even trying to stop him!” </p><p> </p><p>“I’m sorry! I-I’m doing everything that I can!”</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>“<em> Sonic! </em>”</p><p> </p><p>He felt a hand grab his own, pulling him away slightly. He looked up into crimson eyes holding his emerald ones, a concerned look on his face.</p><p> </p><p>“Let’s just go, okay? We have to get out of here.” </p><p> </p><p>He nodded softly, feeling his feet drag across the ground as Shadow softly walked away. The woman continued yelling down the street after them. He stared down at his red shoes feeling as the pace continued to speed up until they broke out into a run. </p><p>“Faker! You horrible, terrible faker!” The words rang in his ears as they ran. His head hurt. It felt like they continued on for an eternity, pulling himself along after Shadows reassuring warmth that bled through his gloves, his own hand squeezing tightly into Shadow’s. Grounding him slightly back down to Earth.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “Wow, I guess Sonic’s a lot weaker than we thought after all.” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “For the hero of Mobius, he sure is a coward....” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “Not a surprise, really. I always knew he’d abandon us when we needed him the most.” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>But still, no matter how hard he pushed himself, no matter how long he ran. </p><p> </p><p>The words still echoed in his mind.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>He wasn’t exactly sure where he was going, but he knew he needed to get Sonic out of there as fast as he could. </p><p> </p><p>Anger pooled in his stomach as he tugged them forward, forcing his skates to pick up the pace.The wind stung his eyes as his mind continued replaying what had just played out in front of him, he squeezed a little tighter.</p><p> </p><p>He couldn’t understand the nerve some people had, yelling and bashing some kid they’d never met, but been protected by countless amounts of times. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow also couldn’t understand why Sonic put up with it so much, never yelled back or threw punches like <em> he </em> probably would. Just would try to walk away and put on the fakest smile he’d ever seen, he wasn’t a very good liar after all, it was clear that the shit people told him got through sometimes. </p><p> </p><p>And this… was probably one of those times.</p><p> </p><p>The agent skidded to a halt a few feet away from the edge of a cliff he hadn’t noticed. It seemed like a pretty sharp drop from here to the shimmering water below, so he decided here would be as good a place as any. </p><p> </p><p>Gently, he took back his hand and sat down on the grassy earth, Sonic following suit. The troubled look replacing the normally smug grin made him feel slightly queasy. His normally sparking eyes dulled over and red. It made his heart ache, seeing Sonic hurt, so he took a deep breath and looked back out to the sea. </p><p> </p><p>“It’s not true, you know. That lady’s just a bitch” He said so softly he barely realized he’d opened his mouth. Sonic gave him a weak smile and pulled him knees up to his chin before his eyes wandered back to the water below them. </p><p> </p><p>“...I know, I know. It wasn’t even that bad, considering. It's just- it doesn’t make it any easier to hear. I think that I’ve gotten better at it, though.” </p><p> </p><p>Another pause. Shadow bit the inside of his cheek in a mix of lingering frustration and disappointment with himself. He should have gotten them out sooner.</p><p> </p><p>“I guess I just thought I was over all of that stuff, you know?” He continued quietly. “I mean...I thought I was <em> done </em> constantly worrying about it, and I guess I thought if I just kept trying harder, maybe… I wouldn’t keep feeling so helpless.” </p><p> </p><p>“...Did you tell them?” Shadow asked as he felt eyes meet his own, he realized he’d probably just made things worse. “I-I mean- you don’t have to tell me about that or anything if you don’t want to, that was probably too personal of a question anyway-” He fumbled through his words as quickly as possible, feeling his face go red.</p><p> </p><p>A giggle cut him off halfway through his hasty apology, making him turn to look at the hedgehog sitting beside him. </p><p> </p><p>“Oh god, I forgot how bad you are at doing this.” He said through a snicker. Shadow groaned and slumped onto his back. </p><p> </p><p>“I’m sorry, I know. I’m terrible, somehow I’ve managed to make you feel even <em> worse </em> than before.” </p><p> </p><p>“No!” Sonic kinda half yelled half laughed. “You’re doing fine. I-Im glad. That you’re here right now that is. I do feel a little bit better anyway.” Shadow felt the hero lean back into the grass until they were laying side by side, staring up at the darkening sky. </p><p> </p><p>“Really? I haven’t anything yet…”</p><p> </p><p>“I mean, <em> no, </em> but also kinda yeah you did? I dunno, I guess I’m glad you’re worried about me. I’m glad you got me out of there when you did.” </p><p> </p><p>The agent rolled his eyes. “I never said <em> that…” </em></p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Yes. You worry about him constantly. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah you did, but in a very...Shadow kinda way. You know, because you’re too cool to admit stuff like that.” </p><p> </p><p>Can’t really argue with that.</p><p> </p><p>“But anyway, to answer your question, I did. Not <em> everyone, </em> just Tails and Amy, but I’m getting there. They were actually pretty cool about the whole thing. I’m happy I did it, you were right. It <em> does </em> make it a little easier to tell people about that stuff.”</p><p>“Yeah, I figured it would. I used to talk about my concerns with-” <em> Maria. </em> He couldn’t get her name out of his throat again. It felt wrong. “Er- nevermind, it’s not important.”</p><p> </p><p>He could feel Sonic’s puzzled gaze looking over to him, before the hedgehog sat up again. </p><p> </p><p>“So, Emerald Coast, huh? Any reason we ended up over here?” </p><p> </p><p>“Not particularly. I just decided it would be best to get out of there as quickly as possible.” </p><p> </p><p>“Hmmm. Well, it sure is a pretty place to end up I guess.” Sonic snorted in remembrance at his first few visits here, hanging out with his pals and blowing up ol Egghead’s robots was a blast, even back then. </p><p> </p><p>A comfortable silence passed by the two of them. The ebony hedgehog watched the clouds passing above his head, the cool summer breeze, the smell of salt that hung in the air. </p><p> </p><p>“Why didn’t you hit me?” He blurted.</p><p> </p><p>Sonic looked back at him in confusion, and silently Shadow kicked himself for letting the words slip out. Now<em> really </em>wasn’t the time...</p><p> </p><p>“<em> Hit </em>you? What are you talking about?” </p><p> </p><p>“When this whole thing...started. Why didn’t you punch me in the face or something? Why... why did you pretend you weren’t mad?” </p><p> </p><p>Silence. His heart was beating so loud he swore everyone in the city could hear it. Suddenly, everything around him felt overwhelming. His entire body stiffened as he felt Sonic flop back on the grass next to him with a soft <em> thud. </em></p><p> </p><p>“I wasn’t.” </p><p> </p><p>Now it was <em> his </em> turn to be confused. <em> What? </em> How could he <em> not </em>be? If someone acted like that to him they probably spend the rest of their lives using a feeding tube…</p><p> </p><p>“I mean- don’t get me wrong, at first, I was <em> pissed. </em> I thought we were supposed to be friends! And all of a sudden out of nowhere you just started… being a huge dick all over again! You yelled at all of my friends, <em> your </em> friends...me! And you <em> knew </em> the shit you were saying was wrong, too. Even <em> I </em> know you well enough to know you aren’t stupid.” </p><p> </p><p>He felt another pang of guilt. It wasn’t fair to him, was it? Of course Sonic still hated him, why wouldn’t he? He’d just been playing nice this whole time to not start anymore fights? He kept his mouth shut, though. What could he say? More than anything else he wanted to yell <em> Yes! I’m so fucking sorry! I think about how much I fucked up pretty much every minute of the day! But everytime I look at you I can’t tell if I want to kiss you or call you an idiot! Because everytime I see you I find twenty more things that make you more annoyingly cute and stupid! I couldn’t do it anymore because I’m a coward! </em></p><p> </p><p>But he didn’t, because he’s just that- a coward. Didn’t say a word back then, and wouldn’t now, because he was a coward. A coward who runs away whenever things get hard, a coward who couldn’t tell one of his best friends what was wrong then, and wouldn’t do it now either.</p><p> </p><p>“...But, at the same time I was mad because I was<em> worried </em>.” Sonic let out a shaky sigh, a slight pout on his lips. </p><p> </p><p>“I could tell <em> something </em> was wrong- but I didn’t know what to do! Everything I tried to do just seemed to make it <em> worse, </em> but I… I wanted to help, wanted to apologize, I-I wanted to be able to tell you whatever it was was gonna be okay, but I couldn’t. You just... <em> left. </em> For months I looked <em> everywhere </em> for you, I asked every stupid G.U.N member I could find and Rouge and whoever else- and they didn’t tell me anything! And you didn’t answer me once. <em> That's </em> what hurt the most. The fact that you didn’t bother telling anyone where you were going, or w-what was going on…” He trailed off with a waiver in his voice, Shadow felt another wave of nausea roll through his stomach. </p><p> </p><p>“Towards the end, I didn’t even care about all that shit that happened anymore. I just wanted to know that you were still <em> alive. </em> I just wanted things to go back to the way they were before...I wanted them to go back to normal…” He mumbled half of the words as if he were talking to himself and not to the hedgehog sitting next to him. </p><p> </p><p>He blinked up at the darkening clouds in silence. Things <em> couldn’t </em> go back to normal. He didn’t <em> want </em> them to. He didn’t deserve it. Deep down he knew there would always be that feeling of regret, of disappointment, of <em> jealousy </em>. Sonic shouldn’t have to put up with someone like him, he deserves someone better than him, someone who could be with him without hesitations or complications, without those stupid butterflies that got caught in his throat and chest.</p><p> </p><p>“Why?” </p><p> </p><p>He <em> really </em> needed to just shut up.</p><p> </p><p>He could feel the hero’s eyes roll without turning back to face him. “Oh, I don’t know, maybe because we’re <em> friends, </em> Shadow <em> . </em> Believe it or not, I actually care about your wellbeing, as crazy as that might seem! And friends are supposed to <em> help </em> each other, not fucking threaten to break their kneecaps!” He could hear the exasperation in his voice.</p><p> </p><p>Friends. He and Sonic were friends. Friends aren’t supposed to hate each other, or love them either, at least not like <em> that. </em></p><p> </p><p>...But Shadow didn’t love Sonic.</p><p> </p><p>Because that’s all they were. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Friends. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>“Why?” He said a little louder, shoving himself back up right to stare directly into those emerald eyes. Those dazzling, sparkling eyes…</p><p> </p><p>“<em> Why </em> are we friends?” The agent repeated, his heart slamming in his chest as he talked. “What have I <em> ever </em> done to warrant that friendship? After all of this shit that I do, why do you always come back again? Why do you keep giving me second chances when you know I’m just gonna fuck up again?”  He could feel his hands shaking as he ripped the grass below him out of the dirt, still staring into those eyes. </p><p> </p><p>“Why waste the energy? It’s not like you need anymore friends, so why? I don’t understand. I really don’t… what do you see in me?” </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> What do you see in me that I don’t, hedgehog? </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>  Why does it feel like you can see right through everything I say?  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>He felt Sonic’s gaze drop to the floor with a sigh. Slowly, he sat up a little straighter, but didn’t look up. He felt his heart pounding in his ears, everything seemed to have stopped. The silence was suffocating him.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> What do I have that you think you can’t find anywhere else? </em>
</p><p> </p><p>“...Man, and you say <em> I’m </em>slow…” Sonic huffed under his breath, scratching the side of his head. Finally, he looked up again. His stupid, pretty eyes full of determination and will. He had a scary gleam in those things.</p><p> </p><p>“Okay then, let me give you an example: do you remember that party? The one after that super huge fight?” </p><p> </p><p>Of course he did, but he wasn’t going to admit that. “I don’t know. I don’t go to a lot of parties.” He said stiffly. </p><p> </p><p>“Well then that should make it even easier to remember then, right?” He continued, leaning in a little closer as the beginnings of a grin spread across his cheeks.</p><p> </p><p>He stayed silent, refusing to answer both Sonic’s prompting and all of the alarm bells going off inside of his head that sounded a little like: <em> Ohmygodhe’slikefourinchesawayfromyourfacejesuschristwhyishesohotohmygod. </em></p><p> </p><p>After a little huff in disappointment that Shadow wasn’t cooperating he grinned a little wider. “Fine, since your memory is apparently<em> so </em>shoddy all of a sudden, I’ll explain it to you- there was a really big party. A bunch of dudes threw it for me after I was able to beat up Eggman’s egg-o-tron or whatever stupid name he gave it that time. It was sorta a long time ago, I thought you were dead for like three months. Needless to say I was feelin’ a little bummed out and tried to go sulk on my own, and guess which edge lord decided to come pay me a visit?” </p><p> </p><p>Okay. Number one, “bummed out” is not exactly the way <em> he </em>would have put it, but sure.</p><p> </p><p>Now Sonic was WAY too close for comfort, slowly he tried to lean back. “I only did it because Rose would kill me if I didn’t.” He scowled. </p><p> </p><p>The hero was clearly not having any of it. “Yeah right! But anyway, not only did you <em> willingly </em> show up to some party, but you also <em> willingly </em> gave me some actually kinda sorta good advice, too! And also don’t pretend that you <em> don’t </em> remember that because you pretty much brought it up like, fifteen minutes ago.” </p><p> </p><p>He gulped, silently hoping that Sonic wouldn’t notice it, though, as he leaned in a little bit closer. Shadow had nowhere left to run.</p><p> </p><p>“So yeah! We are friends! Whether you like it or not, you are <em> my </em> friend. One of my <em> close </em> friends, in fact! What I’m trying to say is that Shadow, you’re a good person. I don’t wanna sound too sappy or anything, but you are <em> constantly </em> proving to everyone around you that you have a good heart, and even morals sometimes, too! And despite all of the edgy comments, and the glares, and the fact that you probably like MCR or whatever emo shit you listen to, you're passionate, and caring, and honestly a pretty damn good person to be around, too!” Sonic poked him in the chest with a huff.  </p><p> </p><p>The agent blinked. What in the name of chaos was happening? Sonic-the same Sonic who constantly fought him, bickered with him, and tried to one up him, was actually...being nice? With absolutely <em> no </em> shame at all. He would have been mortified. In fact, he was mortified right <em> now.  </em></p><p> </p><p>…Though, for <em> other </em>reasons.</p><p> </p><p>Only after a few more moments of silence did the two of them realize just how close the two of them were to each other. To the point where in his passionate speech, the hero had unconsciously pushed himself almost completely on top of the ebony hedgehog, who was almost completely sure his face was about as red as his eyeliner by now.</p><p> </p><p> The hero’s arms were planted on the ground, sandwiching the two of them closer together, he was so close Shadow could smell the cinnamon in his fur. It should have made him gag, it was so sweet. But he didn’t, why did he feel so comfortable like this? Everything felt hazy. He liked it here, looking up at that grin made his insides melt. Their faces so close their noses almost touched, only a few centimetres of space remained between their lips. His eyes flicked between the emerald eyes looking down at him and the soft smile cast on his muzzle. Even in the dimming light he<em> swore </em> he could see a blush on his face as well, as the gap between them got smaller and smaller, leaning in to match the movement of the boy nearly on top of him, his heart pounding even louder as they closed their eyes and-</p><p> </p><p>“SONIC?! WHERE ON MOBIUS ARE YOU TWO?!” The shrill and worried voice coming from Sonic wrist communicator jolted them both out their trance with a squawk, shoving themselves as far away from each other as fast as they could. </p><p> </p><p>“H-hey Amy!” He stammered as they tried to collect themselves. “W-we were just planning on headin’ home, right Shads?” </p><p> </p><p>Before he could process that something- Sonic’s wrist- was being shoved in front of his face it was already gone. “Yup! Shads says hi too!” Shadow cringed at the obvious voice crack but at the same time was having enough trouble trying to get his heart rate back down to care. </p><p> </p><p>The was a muffled thump coming from her side, presumably from the pink hedgehog slumping back on the couch. “Oh thank<em> god </em>, I thought I was gonna have to go tell Rouge that both of you had killed each other because I left you alone for a day…” Another sigh of relief. “Alright, be back soon, okay? We’ve got dinner to make!” </p><p> </p><p>He watched as Sonic nodded, and heard a click as Amy hung up. The two of them slowly stood up and grabbed the now slightly crushed groceries and headed home in an awkward silence, which was eventually filled by Sonic’s normal babbling about something, but he didn’t think he listened to it at all. Shadow didn’t say a word the rest of the night, his mind stuck in a loop of absolute terror and confusion. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> What the hell just happened?! </em>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>AW YEAH BABY THE PLOT THICKENS?! ( not really ) </p><p>I hope you have enjoyed this weeks' dose of trash Sonadow content from me and hopefully many more to come!!! Online classes still suck ass so potentially it might go a little slower than usual, but I'll try my best.</p><p>aaaanyway, I hope you have had a lovely week my friends! Please stay safe!</p><p>( some elements will make more sense in the next chapter  )<br/>&lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. The Party. (wow)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>One of the first times Sonic and Shadow ever talked to one another. </p><p>The first time they did it willingly.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The hero grimaced as he forced his tired limbs to trudge him forward, pushing himself along the dreary path back home covered in mud, oil, and a few nasty cuts. He gulped as he made his way down the familiar tree line with the promising thought of a warm shower and a soft bed that he could mope in being the only thing keeping him from giving up and passing out against a tree for the night. Sonic shivered and rubbed his hand on his arms in an attempt to block out the October cold seeping it’s way into his bones, to little avail much to his displeasure. </p><p> </p><p>Today had not been an easy one, as surprising as it may seem, apparently even the Hero of <em> Mobius </em> sometimes has bad days. Usually, Sonic prided himself on his very easy going nature, and his ability to think on his feet and go with whatever life threw at him, but today had been unusually terrible and he hoped to block it out with some quality alone time and a good night's sleep. </p><p> </p><p>Apparently whoever was up there watching over him was <em> not </em> listening very carefully. </p><p> </p><p>With a sigh of relief, he finally made it to the familiar creaky staircase and up to his banged up door, a feeling of contentment washing over him, because at least he’d made it through the brunt of an awful day and now he’d get some time to recover, right?</p><p> </p><p>Well...not <em> exactly.  </em></p><p> </p><p>Pushing the door open with a newfound thankfulness that he’d helped Tails finish fixing their shared PS2, he stepped into the very dark house. It was very quiet he noticed, as he walked through the walkway, which was unusual considering whose house it <em> was </em> . Even if his brother hadn’t come home yet, which he had figured might have been the case, it was never <em> quiet. </em> They lived in a pretty cheap and old building, so practically everything creaked, groaned, whined, and even occasionally <em> shrieked </em>, even if Tails was insistent that there wasn’t a ghost living in their hallway closet, you can never be too sure. </p><p> </p><p>It wasn’t exactly an <em> unwanted </em> quietness, just a very unusual one is all. </p><p> </p><p>So, he made his way to their living room, finally content with the fact that he had in fact made it home alive, and now he was going to spent some quality time eating tons of junk food and watching trash TV until he fell asleep or his brains fried in the process, whichever one came first. A pretty good evening plan, not to brag. </p><p> </p><p>But as he was about to plop down on the well loved couch, he was met with a very jarring distraction. </p><p> </p><p>“SURPRISE!”</p><p> </p><p> Sonic squawked in, for lack of a better word, <em> surprise, </em> as a horde of smiling faces jumped out from all nooks and crannies of his house he wasn’t even sure <em> he </em>knew of popped out as the glaring lights stung his eyes. Music so loud it vibrated the tables and filled his ears as he gulped in confusion at the bombardment of colors, balloons, streamers, and people crammed in his eyesight as he felt his heart shrivel in his chest. </p><p> </p><p>“...What?” He said meekly although he couldn’t hear himself think under all of the chaos. Suddenly, he saw a bouncing figure make her way through the hordes of dancers and party-goers all squeezed into his fairly small, (and not made for partying) house. </p><p> </p><p>“SO, WHAT DO YOU THINK, SONIC?! DID WE SURPRISE YOU?!” Amy yelled way louder than necessary, beaming at him in delight.  </p><p> </p><p>“U-uh I guess? What’s this all about?” He tried to hide the obvious discomfort in his voice with a half baked smile, and somehow the pink haired hedgehog didn’t seem to realize. </p><p> </p><p>“HUH? WHAT DO YA MEAN, IT’S FOR YOU OF COURSE!” She continued, struggling to get her voice over the music that blared through the room. </p><p> </p><p>“Yeah but why?!” He called back.</p><p> </p><p>“WAIT WHAT DID YOU SAY? OH, WHY? BECAUSE IT’S THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE 4,772,730 TIME YOU’VE BEATEN EGGMAN, SILLY!” </p><p> </p><p>“Oh...yeah, how could I have forgotten.” He gave her a wary laugh in confusion as he jumped out of the way of someone spilling their drink on him. “You know, you <em> really </em> didn’t need to do any of this for me! I-I’m okay!” </p><p> </p><p>“WHAT?” </p><p> </p><p>“I SAID, YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO DO ANY OF THIS FOR ME!” He hollered with his hands cupped around his mouth. </p><p> </p><p>Amy gave him a look of confusion as she danced along to the bass, trying to decipher what he was saying. “OH, IT’S OKAY! WE WANTED TO THANK YOU FOR ALL OF THE HELP YOU GIVE US! NO PROBLEM AT ALL!” She grinned while swaying side to side. </p><p> </p><p>“I appreciate it, I really do! But maybe we could do this another ti-” </p><p> </p><p>“I’M GLAD! MAYBE WE COULD TALK ANOTHER TIME, THOUGH. I CAN’T HEAR WHAT YOU’RE SAYING AT ALL!” </p><p> </p><p>“Actually maybe we could just… take it down a couple of notches or something-”</p><p> </p><p>“HUH? WHAT WAS THAT? UH, ANYWAY, I’M GONNA GO FIGURE OUT WHERE CHARMY PUT THERE PUNCH, OKAY? DON’T HAVE TOO MUCH FUN WHILE I’M GONE, ALRIGHT? HAH! JUST KIDDING! HAVE AS MUCH FUN AS YOU WANT! SEE YOU LATER, SONIC!” She howled as she politely shoved her way past some party-goers, throwing him a thumbs up and a wink before disappearing into the crowd. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic sighed and looked down at his feet, the ground rumbling underneath them as he watched the one person he knew be engulfed into a horde of what he presumed to be his fans? Maybe some old acquaintances now and then, smiling uneasily at the people he walked past and trying to shove down the urge to just lay on the floor and hide until everyone had left.</p><p> </p><p>He didn’t <em> mind </em> crowds and parties, he liked talking to people quite a bit and was always in the mood to make friends, but right now it was feeling like too much. It <em> seemed </em> like he should have been having fun, this was exactly the kind of thing he usually enjoyed! Why did he feel so uncomfortable all of a sudden? He felt guilty, it was clear his friends had put a lot of effort into this on his behalf, but here he was, squeezed into a corner of the kitchen with an undrunken cup of punch in his hand. Glancing between smiling at his friends as best he could while his eyes strayed back to the clock hanging on the side of the wall. He just wanted to go to bed, is that too much to ask? </p><p> </p><p>He cringed as the sound of something shattering off in another room, making a mental note to buy a new broom the next day, it seemed like he was going to need it. </p><p> </p><p>A few more minutes of awkward standing later he slowly made his way off of the wall after hearing a crowd cheering and clapping as Knuckles chugged what must have been his twelfth cup of juice. </p><p> </p><p>Peeling himself off of the small bit of space he’d made for himself, Sonic began to get through the crowd of flinging arms and legs as politely as he could, almost getting knocked in the face a few times. </p><p> </p><p>Eventually he half jogged up the stairs to the significantly less loud upper floor, though the ground still shook with vibrations from downstairs. Even up here, the hero noticed, was covered in decorations and balloons. Amy had really outdone herself this time. </p><p> </p><p>He grimaced as he walked past a couple of people making out in front of the bathroom, pushing his door open and closing it behind him. </p><p> </p><p>Silently, Sonic thanked whoever was in charge of decorations for leaving his room the way it was, other than the odd streamer or two. He leaned his head up against the door for a moment, even up here he could still make out the muffled noises of music and laughter, but much to his luck it seemed significantly quieter. </p><p> </p><p>He walked over to the other side of his room, the floorboards creaking under his feet, over to the windowsill on the wall. He pushed the window halfway up and for a moment admired the cool breeze that brushed over his face, before shoving it all the way to the top. With a glance, he looked back at the door with a twinge of guilt, but figured he’d be back before they noticed. Just needed a breather was all. Maybe some fresh air would do him good. </p><p> </p><p>Putting one leg after the other, he pulled himself onto the other side of the window and grabbed onto the ledge of the roof. Grabbing on tightly with both hands, he hauled himself onto the shingles and slumped onto his back with a sigh. </p><p> </p><p>The chill in the air seeped into his tired arms as he gazed up at the stars above him, a feeling of disappointment finally sinking into his mind with the sudden quietness. Sonic bit hit cheek in annoyance at himself, a hero shouldn’t be feeling like this! He was letting everyone he cared about down, even just by sitting up here by himself while the rest of them had fun. </p><p> </p><p>But he needed a break. He’d already messed everything up today, so maybe just this once he’d let himself sulk in peace. </p><p> </p><p>Even <em> that </em>hope was quickly abandoned as he heard the sound of someone thudding along the tiles close behind him, stopping next to his head. He didn’t bother to look up and see who it was, opting to instead squeeze his eyes shut and will whoever it was to leave him alone. </p><p> </p><p>“You know Faker, it’s not very polite to leave in the middle of your own party. Miss Rose is looking everywhere for you, she wants you to cut a cake. ” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic nearly choked on his own spit at the sound of the very familiar voice nonchalantly in an almost mocking tone. Of <em> course. </em> Because why wouldn’t it be Shadow who decided now was the <em> best time </em> to get in his monthly “Hah! I’m better than you because I’m Shadow the Hedgehog!” kicks. <em> Fantastic.  </em></p><p> </p><p>It had only been a few months since the ebony hedgehog had seemingly come back from the <em> dead </em>, and yet he was still acting just as arrogant as he remembered him to be. Sometimes he wondered why he’d been disappointed he’d left in the first place! </p><p> </p><p>“What do <em> you </em> want, Shadow? I’m not <em> really </em> in the mood for all this right now.” He scowled. </p><p> </p><p>A pause. He could almost feel Shadow’s gaze burning holes into the side of his head as he sat up, kicking his feet over the ledge of the roof and refused to look the other direction. He didn’t care if the agent had come here just to chide him into something, or try to make him feel even worse than he did already, he<em> wasn’t </em> about to give him that satisfaction. So the hero watched blankly out the other way in complete silence, waiting until the other gave up and left him alone. </p><p> </p><p>“So I <em> was </em> right then.” The agent observed. The blue hedgehog’s ears flattened as he glowered at the obvious jab, annoyance pooling in his stomach at his insistence to stick around and make Sonic feel as pathetic as possible. </p><p> </p><p>“Go away.” He said flatly. </p><p> </p><p>“Something’s wrong, isn’t it?” Shadow questioned with a cock of his head, his eyebrows creased in concern. His tone felt off though, there wasn’t enough malice for his liking. It kinda seemed like he was being <em> genuine </em>for once, which was a can of worms he really didn’t feel like opening just yet. Sonic refused to look over at him as the boy crouched down next to him and stared intently. </p><p> </p><p>“I said I’m <em> fine, </em>okay? Tell Amy I’ll be down in a minute.” </p><p> </p><p>“I don’t think she’s really in the mood to be talking to me at the moment.” </p><p> </p><p>“Why? Didn’t she send you up here to go drag me back downstairs?” He said hotly, looking over at the black hedgehog in annoyance. </p><p> </p><p>Another silence. He watched as a flicker of confusion passed through the others eyes, but he was just as still as before, still watching his own eyes with attentive concern. </p><p> </p><p>“No one <em> sent </em>me here, hedgehog. You were acting oddly and when you left for a while, I figured I might as well see if you were alright.” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic blinked in confusion. Shadow did things like that on his own accord? He hadn’t known the other hedgehog for a very long time, but felt like he had a pretty strong grasp on the gist of him. Edgy, standoffish, a little mean, and <em> not </em> exactly someone you wanted to get on the wrong side of if you enjoy having functioning limbs. So why would he out of the blue decide that he wanted to be <em> nice </em> , or at least as compassionate as the Ultimate Lifeform can be without ruining his bad boy reputation and that jazz. In fact, why had he come here at <em> all? </em></p><p> </p><p>“...Oh. Is there any reason why you came up here yourself instead of just telling someone else?” </p><p> </p><p>“None of your concern, Faker.” </p><p> </p><p><em> Now that's more like it. </em>He thought to himself with a half grin, pulling his arms around his knees. </p><p> </p><p>“Well. I mean, I appreciate it, but I think I’m gonna be okay. You can go back down if you want, I don’t want to ruin your fun just because I’m not feeling up to it right now.” </p><p> </p><p>Was it weird that some part of him kind of regretted saying that? </p><p> </p><p>“...It’s fine. I’ve never been a fan of large gatherings like this anyway. Rouge made me come because I owe her a favor.” </p><p> </p><p>He snorted in amusement and smiled. That answered another question on his mind. The crickets hummed in the air around them in the cold. The two of them sat in comfortable silence, making out the silhouettes of clouds in the dark, the windows from the floor below casting a yellow glow on Sonic’s crummy lawn decorations as he made a silent note to finally throw out the mossy gnome that had been sitting in a pile of dirt for god knows how long. </p><p> </p><p>“Are you sure you're okay?” It was soft, but still surprised him a bit at what an unusually caring tone the agent had. Maybe he should stop being so shocked everytime, maybe tonight was just an unusual night. </p><p> </p><p>The hero nodded, though he wasn’t sure if Shadow could make it out in the dark, or even if he was looking the same way. Something about this situation seemed very normal, despite it being so out of place with their normal, few sentence long interactions. </p><p> </p><p>“Yeah. I think so… I’ve just been having a kinda rough day.” </p><p> </p><p>“Would you mind me asking why?”</p><p> </p><p>He took a deep breath, and put his head on his knees with an exhale. “I got into a fight with Eggman, unsurprisingly, but this one...didn’t go so hot.” He started uneasily. “I mean, there were <em> tons </em> of badniks. So many you couldn’t see the pavement for about a block! I’d been at it for nearly two hours at that point, but they just wouldn’t stop! I-I couldn’t take them <em> all </em>out, not when I was all on my own at least.” </p><p> </p><p>He glanced over at Shadow, who met his glaze with a slight nod. Sonic smiled to himself before continuing. </p><p> </p><p>“Well, at some point or another, I got stuck into this <em> really </em> tight spot. I was trying to take out his main robot, the one who kept making more of those suckers pop out, but then I looked over and there was this kid. Couldn’t have been older than six, who was pinned up against a wall between a different swarm. And he looked me dead in the <em> eyes, </em> and he just looked so <em> scared. </em> It was like he was <em> sure </em>he was going to die, like he really thought that I wasn’t gonna make it over to him in time and that would have been it for him.” </p><p> </p><p>He felt his shoulders slump at the thought. </p><p> </p><p>“And, I <em> did </em> get to him. And he was okay, found his parents and everything, sent Eggman packing, but it made me think...what if one day I fail?” </p><p> </p><p>“What do you mean?” </p><p> </p><p>“What am I gonna do if one day I just...<em> can’t </em> save someone? What am I gonna do one day when everyone relies on me and I let them down? When I <em> won’t </em> be able to save the day? W-when some day I’m gonna have to tell some poor mom, or dad, or whoever else that I <em> failed? </em> Or that I can’t protect my friends anymore? What would I do if I let them get hurt o-or worse?” </p><p> </p><p>He could feel his hands shaking at the thought. He bit the inside of his cheek again, so hard he tased copper.</p><p> </p><p>“It’s just… It’s <em> terrifying </em> to think about. All I’ve ever wanted to do was help people, but at the same time it scares me so much to think that one day I’ll lose them. My friends, those people I meet on the street...all of those lives that people put into my hands because they think I can help them, but what’ll they do when they realize I can’t always save people?  I’m so scared that one day I’ll see some bystander, or some innocent civilian, and they’ll have to get hurt because of my actions, <em> my </em> mistakes. I try to just brush it off and act like it’s nothing, but it’s <em> not, </em> is it?” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic looked at Shadow holding his breath, almost expecting him to burst out laughing, to tell him he’s an idiot or a failure just like he thought, but it didn't come. </p><p> </p><p>“...I think that’s just a part of being a hero, I suppose.” The words sounded a little uneasy as he said them. Shadow’s usually rich voice was replaced with something a little less robotic or menacing.  He was clenching his fists in his hands. Almost like he was trying to stop himself from saying something. Weird. </p><p> </p><p>He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, studying the agent as he looked out over the bright lights in the distant cities. </p><p> </p><p>“I don’t think people expect you to be perfect, Sonic. I don’t think <em> you </em> should expect yourself to be perfect, either. People will always try to tell who you are, or who you should be, but what’s important is that you try to be your best self, not somebody else’s. It’s true that you probably won’t be able to save everyone. That’s just a part of life, things don’t always go the way you wish they would. But that can’t stop you from trying, can it? And it can’t stop you from being a caring and loving person, either.” </p><p> </p><p>“I’m not sure you give yourself enough credit for what you <em> can </em> do, either. I haven’t known you for very long, and even <em> I’m </em>not foolish enough to think you’re incompitent at being a hero. You're surprisingly quick on your feet and have a way of inspiring people to follow in your footsteps, you know? And for someone your age, you certainly have quite a lot more on your plate than most.” </p><p> </p><p>“We’re literally the same age…” He grumbled. </p><p> </p><p>“Shut up. I’m encouraging you.” He said in a matter of fact voice. “Those are just things you have to accept, but I don’t think it’ll hold you back from doing what you think is best. I think you’d benefit from telling your friends, too. They seem like good ones, so I think they’ll understand that you need a break as well.” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic felt a small smile tug at his mouth, looking up to the hedgehog beside him with a giggle.</p><p> </p><p>“Where’d you learn <em> that </em> advice, Shadow? It kinda sounds like you're just quoting a trashy motivational poster…” He snorted. “... but I do feel a little bit better for some reason.”</p><p> </p><p>He gave Sonic a slight grin. “Let’s just say I… uh, had a good teacher.” The agent twinged at the memory.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m glad you came up, Shadow.” He said softly, and got a soft nod in response. </p><p> </p><p>A breeze brushed past them, and he rubbed his arms trying to keep in the cold out. The crickets chirped happily in the summer heat, the thrum of the base still pounding from the windows below. It was a surprisingly comfortable silence, sitting side by side with someone he’d only known through fleeting insults and help in battles. A little strange, but a good kind of strange. </p><p> </p><p>After a few moments, the two stood up and clambered back through the open window back to the party downstairs. Somewhere along the way, Sonic looked back behind him to make a witty joke, but the agent had already slipped back off into a different crowded room, presumably to go find Rouge. He shook his head with a smile, before slinking his way back into the kitchen. </p><p> </p><p>Almost instantly he was greeted with hugs and high fives, and also another cup of punch. The music still rang through his ears, and his fur was still matted with mud, but for some reason it didn’t bother him so much anymore. He didn’t say very much, opting more to smiling to himself as he recounted the events of the day, though still laughing at the occasional joke or nodding along to some technical terms Tails spouted off that he didn’t catch at all. </p><p> </p><p>And when Amy found her way to their circle of friends and asked, “Hey Sonic! Where’d you go? We were looking for you!” </p><p> </p><p>He just looked out into the crowd of dancing and excitement, knowing somewhere there was a pair of black ears bobbing through the sea of people somewhere, and grinned.</p><p> </p><p>“Oh, you know, just made a new friend is all.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hello again my friends! </p><p>Today we have some fun ***backstory*** (woah!! )</p><p>I hope you enjoyed reading! Thank you for the comments and kudos and all that, you all are way too nice (இ﹏இ`｡)</p><p>Next week's will be longer btw! </p><p>Stay safe!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Sonic does some thinking</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Sonic goes into gay panic mode 0-O</p><p> </p><p>alllll been there, buddy</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Sonic didn’t know what to do with himself. </p><p> </p><p>The next day he could barely remember what the three of them did, his mind swimming with thoughts he had no clue how to handle, but was too afraid to ask anyone else for help. </p><p> </p><p>There was one thing that the boy knew, and that was that he wasn’t really a romance kind of guy. He didn’t <em> mind </em> it, per say, he’d done his fair share of harmless flirting with cute fans, but he also had no interest in pursuing anything in that. He always kind of decided that he liked Amy, I mean she was nice, sweet, caring, what couldn’t he like about her? Even if he really felt <em> nothing </em> towards her in that sense, he’d always figured they’d show up sooner or later. No one would be very surprised. It didn’t really matter though, because he wasn’t planning on doing anything in a romantic sense that anytime soon.</p><p> </p><p>Or at least that’s what he’d <em> thought. </em> </p><p> </p><p>What concerned him even more than that though, was <em> who </em> his brain had decided he was interested in.</p><p> </p><p>… Not that he was interested in Shadow or anything. </p><p> </p><p><em> I was probably just tired. </em> He thought to himself as he stared up at Amy’s ceiling, blankets kicked off to the side because of all of his tossing and turning. <em> That’s why I may or may not have tried to kiss the dude who I’ve tried to fight on multiple occasions. Just… really, really tired.  </em></p><p> </p><p>Even now, he could feel the heat rising up his cheeks just <em> thinking </em> about it. He <em> didn’t </em> like Shadow like that, and Shadow didn’t like <em> him </em> like that, either. They were just really close friends, is all. He probably just got caught up in the moment, the Emerald Coast <em> is </em>a really pretty place after all. </p><p><em> Yes, but we’ve already established that you </em> <b> <em>weren’t</em> </b> <em> looking at the water now where you- </em></p><p> </p><p>He kicked himself in the leg. Now is <em> not </em>the time to be thinking about that sort of thing. He should go to bed. It was probably already way too late anyway, Amy was definitely going to wake him up early tomorrow. He should quit while he’s ahead. </p><p> </p><p>He shoved the blankets back over his head with a huff and squeezed his eyes shut, willing himself to go to sleep. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Yeah, but what would have happened if Amy hadn’t interrupted you? </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Nothing! There was nothing to interrupt, because nothing happened, so just go to sleep!  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> ...Didn’t kinda seem like he leaned in too, though?  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> No! He was probably just confused because I was kinda laying on him, that’s all! Stop overthinking things, brain!  </em>
</p><p> </p><p><em> But imagine if you </em> <b> <em>had</em> </b> <em> kissed him…  </em></p><p> </p><p>His eyes flicked back open, if he hadn’t been blushing before he <em> definitely </em> was now. With a groan, he flopped back onto his pillow. Sleeping clearly wasn’t panning out like he’d hoped it would. Sonic bit the inside of his cheek, he could almost hear Tails scolding him for the bad habit, but it just made him pout more. </p><p> </p><p>Of all the people in the world, why did he have to crush on <em> Shadow?  </em></p><p> </p><p>Almost instantly, he thought of about fifty reasons why he could, not that he <em> does </em> of course. He doesn’t like Shadow.</p><p> </p><p>Alright, sure. Shadow was <em> kinda </em> attractive. That was kind of hard to miss. He had that bad boy look, and wore it pretty well. But that did <em> not </em> mean that he was pining for him or anything. He probably had enough fan girls anyways.</p><p> </p><p>...Would it really be such a bad thing if he did, anyway? Sure, he was a little standoffish, but he <em> did </em>have a lot of good qualities, afterall. He laughed at almost all of Sonic’s jokes (even if he never admitted it), he was quite charming, and he had such cool eyeliner… </p><p> </p><p>Plus he wasn’t <em> that </em> well acquainted with Mobius, despite living there for a few years now. It probably wouldn’t be hard to think of places to go on dates together, and it wasn’t like Shadow was a very picky person to begin with. Plus, maybe then he’d get to see Shadow smile more, not like a weird grimace-smirk thing he always does, but when he <em> actually </em>smiles. Just an all out grin, his eyes get all shiny and his ears perk up a little more than usual… And he looks really fuzzy, too. </p><p> </p><p><em> He looks like he’d give really nice hugs, with all that fur. He’s probably really soft, and warm… </em> Suddenly he snapped his eyes back open, not even realizing he’d closed them again to begin with. He should <em> not </em> be thinking about stuff like that, especially not at night when he needed to sleep! Sonic scrunched up his face in annoyance and mushed the pillow into his nose. He was realizing quite quickly that this method of going to sleep was <em> not </em> a good one, what he needed was a distraction. </p><p> </p><p>Quietly, he made his way towards the door, hoping that he wouldn’t wake up the person causing his internal anguish. He inwardly cringed at the squeak, but didn’t hear any movement as he slipped out the door. </p><p> </p><p>With a sigh, Sonic stepped forward looking down at his feet. Almost immediately he bumped into something very fuzzy with his head, eyes shooting up to meet the tired red ones looking at him. </p><p> </p><p>“Oh, whoops. Sorry Shads.” </p><p> </p><p>He gave a quick nod before walking back into the room. The hero watched in confusion, what was Shadow doing up so late? He furrowed his eyebrows as he trudged into the kitchen, eyes still warily looking at the door behind him. </p><p> </p><p>Hopping up to open the cupboard, he grabbed one of the decorated cups on the shelves with a sigh. He dragged himself over to the sink and filled it with water, he bit his lip again and cringed when he tasted a droplet of blood. </p><p> </p><p>Now wasn't the time to be thinking about Shadow like that. They had a <em> mission </em> that needed to get done. It was probably just a one off thing, anyway. He was <em> finally </em> getting the agent to talk to  him again, so why scare him off with something like that? It wasn't fair to either of them. </p><p> </p><p>Gulping down his drink, he turned back to the door and slid back under the cool covers, drifting off into a dreamless sleep.</p><p>***</p><p>The next morning, Sonic blearily rubbed his eyes, silently cursing Rouge for making him get up at such an ungodly hour, even if it was through a communicator, she sure could be noisy when she wanted to be. Another area near the city explored, and yet another one that had no sign of Eggman other than the occasional group of Badnicks. Both of them decided that <em> something </em> was definitely going on, but couldn't put their finger on <em> what.  </em></p><p> </p><p>What was even stranger was that all of the bases they investigated seemed used, and <em> recently, </em> too. At least judging by the abundance of traps and security, including a trap wire that Sonic nearly walked right into before Shadow had grabbed his arm. And yet they all still seemed to be abandoned. No sign of Robotnick anywhere, no hints about where he could possibly be hiding or even more concerning, what he was <em> planning. </em></p><p> </p><p>He tried not to think about it too much, though. Rouge said that they were doing their best to find him, and that it was better if the two of them just sat tight and helped whenever they could. He could tell Shadow was having a hard time dealing with that uncertainty, but they both trusted the bat enough to not question too hard.</p><p> </p><p>Though the disappearance of Eggman was not the <em> only </em> thing on the cobalt hedgehog's mind- he was worried about Shadow. </p><p> </p><p>He knew that the agent didn't exactly work the way most hedgehogs he knew did, didn't need to eat or sleep nearly as much, being part Black Arms. But even he knew that the amount of sleep Shadow got wasn't healthy. </p><p> </p><p>He could see it in his eyes, the darkening circles under his eyes were only getting worse as time went on. The ungodly amount of coffee he inhaled on a daily basis, his normally pristine quills slightly ruffled, the heaviness in his sighs when he thought no one was listening. It made him wonder if all of this waiting around was getting to him more than he was letting on.</p><p> </p><p>Earlier in the morning, he remembered walking over to see Shadow looking down at an important looking document, crumpled up and folded. What puzzled him the most was the slight pout on his face, brows narrowed in thought as he glared at it.</p><p> </p><p>The hero had figured now was as good a time as any, and tried asking if he had been having trouble sleeping, but had only gotten a clipped "<em> No. </em> Stop sticking your head into my business." And a glare before shoving him out of the way, crumpling whatever was on the piece of paper with his fist. Clearly he was not approaching this the right way, because Shadow hadn't talked to him since. He knew better than to chase after him and apologize, it would only make things worse. He just hoped Shadow was feeling okay. What worried him the most was that even if he <em> wasn’t, </em> he wouldn’t tell anyone regardless.</p><p> </p><p>He tried his best not to think about it, but it didn’t work very well. </p><p> </p><p>Much to Amy's delight, Rouge had informed them that she would be coming down in a few more days with plenty of supplies and a place to sleep. </p><p> </p><p>"Alright boys, not much longer until G.U.N joins you in Station Square, alright? One of the higher ups says they might have just found a clue, but I wouldn't get your hopes up."</p><p> </p><p>The two of them gave each other glances, trying to ignore the huge grin plastered on the heroine's face though she insisted it wasnt that they were bad housemates, she just was relieved to not have to hear their bickering any more. Not that they were exactly talking at all at the current moment, but he would let it slide. Sonic was skeptical to say the least.</p><p> </p><p>After arranging the meeting place and time, Rouge gave him some even better news. </p><p> </p><p>"Oh! I almost forgot! Tails agreed to help us out transferring supplies, so he'll be stopping by for at least a day or two." </p><p> </p><p>"Really?!" Sonic beamed brightly, sitting up a little straighter. "Aw man, it's gonna be so nice to see him again!"</p><p> </p><p>Rouge chuckled and agreed, thanking them all for their cooperation, especially Amy, before hanging up. </p><p> </p><p>After a few more minutes of discussing, the pink haired girl announced she was going on a walk, leaving the two of them alone and agreeing to come back together for dinner. He felt Shadow staring at the side of his head, turning to question him but didn’t even get the chance. Almost immediately, Shadow walked off and disappeared off into the house. Sonic wasn't even sure how he managed to <em> do </em>that, considering there were only about six rooms in the apartment (because homes like this are expensive in the city, goddammit). </p><p> </p><p>He didn't bother trying to look for him, it was clear the agent needed some time by himself. Maybe he was just weirded out because of what happened before? He couldn't be sure. Whatever it was though, Sonic caught him staring more than once, opening his mouth like he was going to say something, but eventually giving up and teleporting away to go and do whatever Shadows do unattended. He figured the agent would say if something was on his mind, even if it took him a couple of times. He didn't expect to see much of him for a while. </p><p> </p><p>Now he had an important job to do, and he didn’t have very much time to get it done. </p><p> </p><p>With a grin, he pulled out his phone and skipped into the kitchen. Pulling out an assortment of pans, bowls, and baking ingredients out and piling them onto Amy’s pristine countertops. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic was just as bad as baking as he remembered, not surprisingly. About half an hour later, he peered into the strange concoction sitting in the mixing bowl in front of his with a frown. He cringed inwardly, but continued half guessing-half reading the recipe as he dumped another cup of sugar into the goop, praying that it wouldn’t taste <em> that </em> bad when he was done.</p><p> </p><p>...Though his hopes weren’t high. </p><p> </p><p>He glanced up from his project with an annoyed huff, only to be greeted by Shadow, who was looking at him from a few feet away. His eyes widened a little as he realized that Sonic had noticed him, standing a little stiffer. </p><p> </p><p>The two blinked at each other motionlessly. Sonic watched curiously as the agent’s tired eyes flicked from the checkered floor beneath his feet to the hedgehog standing in front of him, covered in what was <em> supposed </em> to be cupcake batter. </p><p> </p><p>He turned his head to the side a little, eyes not meeting the hero’s gaze before taking a deep sigh.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m sorry for snapping at you earlier. I knew you were asking out of concern and I still brushed you off anyways.”  </p><p> </p><p>Sonic was so surprised he barely forgot to answer. The tiny pout on his face with his eyebrows furrowed in annoyance, and the unusually wide eyes looking at him with a mix of guilt and hopefulness, almost like a child who’s just gotten in trouble with their parents. A small smile tugged at the side of his lips. <em> Cute, </em> he thought. Before shaking the thought from his mind. Now was <em> not </em> the time, either. </p><p> </p><p>“Oh! It’s okay, Shads. You don’t need to apologize for not wanting to talk about personal stuff.” He assured as he scratched the side of his head, immediately regretting it as he smeared even more batter into his already sticky spines. That was certainly gonna take a while to get out. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow’s ears perked up a little. “You’re not mad?” He asked with genuine surprise lacing his voice. </p><p> </p><p>The hero giggled and shook his head. “Of course not! Why would I be?” He smiled. </p><p> </p><p>“But I thought you were avoiding me…?” The hedgehog trailed off with a confused expression on his face. </p><p> </p><p>“No?” He laughed, furrowing his eyebrows.</p><p> </p><p>Shadow’s expression softened, <em> almost </em> with the hint of a smile on his mouth for a few seconds, before he peered over to the huge mess his rival had made in Amy’s poor kitchen. He wrinkled his nose looking at the flour coating two thirds of the walls, a huge stack of dishes sitting in the sink, before his eyes finally landed on the strange, alien looking mixture that both the table and Sonic was covered in. </p><p> </p><p>"So...what are you making?" He asked cautiously. </p><p> </p><p>“That’s a good question…” He grinned at the table sheepishly, stepping to the side to let his rival stand beside him. </p><p> </p><p>“I was <em> trying </em> to make Amy some cupcakes, to say thanks for letting us stay here, but…well, clearly baking is not my strong suit.” </p><p> </p><p>He nodded softly, grimacing. “Well, that’s certainly <em> one </em>way to put it…” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic groaned in defeat. “Hey! I don’t do this stuff very much, okay! It could be worse! Stop giving me that look!” He defended with a huff. <em> Or at least I hope it can… </em> he thought quietly. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow did <em> not </em> stop giving him that look. </p><p>He narrowed his eyes and made a face back, hoping to deter the agent and his cold, heartless, face, but sadly it was to no avail. The cobalt hedgehog leaned over the table and scraped a nearby spatula on the rim of the bowl, holding it out to the agent who eyed it suspiciously. </p><p> </p><p>“Here. You should at least <em> try </em> it before you shatter my dreams of becoming a baker.” </p><p> </p><p>“Are you sure?” He asked, raising his eyebrows. </p><p> </p><p>“Shadow! Don’t you have <em> any </em> faith in me?!” He pleaded in exasperation. </p><p> </p><p>“No?” The agent said slowly, crimson eyes still fixed on the spoon in front of him with concern. </p><p> </p><p>“Pleaaaaase? There were only like, eight ingredients, so how bad could it be?!” </p><p> </p><p>“Bad. Very, <em> very, </em>bad.” He grinned. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic rolled his eyes. </p><p> </p><p>“Fine. I’ll do it, but if it’s awful I will never forgive you.” </p><p> </p><p>“Good a deal as any!” </p><p> </p><p>“If I die, I’m writing you out of my will.” </p><p> </p><p>“How touching. Now stop being dramatic and just lick the spoon, princess!” </p><p> </p><p>“<em> What </em> did you just call me <em> ? </em>” Shadow scowled.</p><p> </p><p>“Stop waffling and just do it!” The hero grinned. </p><p> </p><p>He huffed and took the spoon from his hand, crimson eyes flicked from the batter to Sonic, to which he nodded vigorously in encouragement. </p><p> </p><p>Hesitantly, he put the spoon in his mouth, and immediately gagged.</p><p> </p><p> “AaCK are you trying to <em>poison</em> her?! What on Mobius did you <em>put</em> in that batter, hedgehog?!” He squawked through gasps, reaching over and chugging a glass of water. </p><p> </p><p>“What?! It <em> cannot </em> be that bad.” Sonic said over a string of curses and very rude noises as Shadow tried to scrub the disgusting taste from his mouth. Scowling at the scene his companion was causing, he tried some of his handiwork. </p><p> </p><p>And it was absolutely <em> disgusting. </em> </p><p> </p><p>The first thing he tasted was <em> salt. </em> Which already isn’t a good sign when you're making chocolate cupcakes, but somehow this was even worse than he could have imagined because of just how <em> much </em> salt there was. So salty in fact, it felt like his taste buds had been singed off of his tongue. It was grainy and very chunky, somehow sickly sweet and also sickly bitter. It had a strange, <em> slimy </em> texture that made his skin crawl. There was something else, too. It almost tasted like <em> meat </em> ? How did he even manage to <em> do </em> that?! Truly, it was one of the most horrifying things he had ever put in his mouth. </p><p> </p><p>Almost as soon as he had tasted it, he skidded over to his rival and stood next to him, spitting out the contents of his mouth into the skin with an ungraceful gag. </p><p> </p><p>After a few more minutes of the two desperately chugging water in an attempt to get the taste out, they eventually dumped the contents out into the trash, shuddering. </p><p> </p><p>“Okay. That’s it, I'm <em> never </em> trying to make food again. Never ever.” He sighed in defeat, slumping to the floor with his head on his knees.</p><p> </p><p>“<em> Never </em> ever?” </p><p> </p><p>“Never ever.” </p><p> </p><p>“Are you <em> sure </em>?” </p><p> </p><p>“You literally just spent the last five minutes gagging up my first attempt! And I can’t even be mad at you for it! I could have killed someone!” </p><p> </p><p>He heard a snort coming from the other side of the kitchen, and a series thumps as Shadow presumably put items on the counter. More rustling, it sounded like he was digging through some papers, what was he looking for? Curiously, Sonic glanced up from his arms, peeking at the agent who was flicking through a series of paperwork with a determined expression on his face. He frowned at one in particular that Sonic could have sworn looked familiar, quickly shoving it back into one of the pockets on his bag without a second glance before continuing to sort through them until he found whatever it was he was looking for. His eyes brightened slightly, as he reread it, carefully placing the rest of the stack back into his black backpack. </p><p> </p><p>He stood, still holding it in his hand, and walked out of the kitchen. Only to appear a couple of seconds later holding a few boxes full of ingredients in his arms and setting them on the table. He repeated this again, but this time with the fridge, pulling out some buttermilk and a carton of eggs, along with a few other things he wasn’t sure he recognized. </p><p> </p><p>“...What are you planning on doing, Shadow?” He asked suspiciously. </p><p> </p><p>“<em> I’m </em> going to make some cupcakes for Miss Rose.” The agent responded, pulling out an array of muffin pans and bowls. “And <em> you </em> are going to help me.” </p><p>He frowned at the hedgehog, who didn’t turn to face him. “You want <em> me </em> to help you? I’ll ruin it!” </p><p> </p><p>“You’ll be <em> fine. </em> I’ll help you. Baking is a good skill to have, you know.” </p><p> </p><p>“...did we both just witness the same event? I think I’m okay with just watching you from the floor, thanks.” </p><p> </p><p>Shadow rolled his eyes and walked over to him. “Do you really want me to tell her that you made a huge mess in her kitchen and then sat on the floor sulking instead of helping make her a thank you present?” He grinned, holding out his hand for Sonic to take. “Now stop moping and get off the floor, Faker.” </p><p> </p><p>He eyed the hand curiously, but stayed put. </p><p> </p><p>“Come on, finish what you started, dumbass.”</p><p> </p><p>He begrudgingly took it, pouting. “<em> Fine, </em> but it was my idea to begin with!” He huffed.</p><p> </p><p>“Exactly! That’s why you're gonna help make it! Wash your hands-er, gloves I guess- and come over here.” </p><p> </p><p>The hedgehog let himself get pulled up from his seat before complying, standing next to his rival hesitantly. </p><p> </p><p>“Here, could you measure out some flour and put it in the bowl?” </p><p> </p><p>“How much?” </p><p> </p><p>“Read the recipe!” </p><p> </p><p>“Okay, okay.” </p><p> </p><p>He glanced down, watching as Shadow cracked a couple of eggs into a mixture of milk and what he assumed was vanilla. Gross. </p><p> </p><p>“Why are you looking at those eggs like that?”</p><p> </p><p>Shaking his head as he glanced away from the bowl, he scooped up a cup of white powder and was about to dump it in the bowl when he felt a hand on his wrist. </p><p> </p><p>“You have to level it out first, dummy.” He said </p><p> </p><p>He frowned over at the boy in question. “What are you talking about? I always guess with stuff like this.” </p><p> </p><p>The agent raised his eyebrows, and put a knife in his hand. “<em> Clearly. </em> You really don’t know anything about making food, do you?” </p><p> </p><p>Guiding Sonic’s hand with his own, he scraped the top of the cup back into the bag before letting him dump it in. And he <em> definitely </em> didn’t think about how gentle and surprisingly soft his touch was, despite his general demeanor being so rough. And he <em> definitely </em> didn’t get a little disappointed when the hand pulled away so he could go start mixing another bowl of ingredients. And most of all, he <em> certainly </em>didn’t stare at Shadow a little too long as he mixed and measured, unconsciously smiling to himself as he worked.  </p><p> </p><p>The two spent the next few minutes in a comfortable silence, or at least, it <em> would </em> be comfortable if the hero could stop getting so distracted. He couldn’t help it! He <em> liked </em> watching his rival snort at his jokes as he attempted to keep them both on track, only occasionally interrupting his comedy routine to ask Sonic to double-check if the oven was on, or to ask him to mix the batter. </p><p> </p><p>He tried his very best to listen to what Shadow would tell him. He <em> really </em> did. Tried to keep a mental note of all the advice he was nonchalantly listing off like everyone knew it, even if it all went over the poor boy’s head. Did his best to ignore how cute he looked as Shadow scolded him for goofing off when they didn’t have time, with a half pout half smirk on his face that did <em> not </em> make his heart do backflips in his chest. He just looked so <em> happy </em> when the agent was talking about it, his eyes sparkled as he talked, even through the dark circles underneath them. He looked at home, scowling in fake annoyance as Sonic licked the spoon after they put the mixture cupcake wrappers. Giggling as he tried to show his friend something he was clearly much better at than him, but still refused to tell him he was doing a bad job. </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>The two of them sat side by side on the floor, watching in awe through the small glass door as product of their labor from the past half hour slowly rose. A very pleasant smell wafted in the kitchen, a mix of cinnamon and cocoa powder coming from the oven in front of them. Sonic glanced up at the timer again. Four minutes left. Three minutes left. </p><p> </p><p>He tapped his foot excitedly. This was probably the most successful thing he’d ever made, he hoped that Amy would be just as happy with them as he was.</p><p> </p><p>More than anything though, he hoped Shadow would like them too.</p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>The icing was a nice, creamy, shade of pink. Sonic had insisted they make it that way because it was Amy’s favorite color, and it was no surprise that it was one of the only colors of food dye she had in the house also. </p><p> </p><p>It tasted surprisingly good, too! Shadow had helped him mix out all of the chunks of butter he’d gotten stuck in there, telling him that next time he should make sure it was a little warmer when he used it. </p><p> </p><p>He <em> really </em>hoped there would be a next time. </p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>The hero was bewildered by Shadow’s icing skills. Every little swirl he put on the cake looked so <em> nice </em> and <em> pretty, </em> but he still had fun dumping it on his own. He had a feeling Amy wouldn’t be very impressed with his, even if she didn’t say anything.</p><p> </p><p>Sonic watched the agent intently staring down at one of them, biting his lip slightly as he concentrated. Eyebrows all furrowed as he squeezed the icing bag, the tiniest bit of a smirk on his lips. When he was done, he held it out to Sonic with a big grin, neat petals piped onto the cupcake in the shape of a flower. Apparently it was the first time he’d done it successfully, in Sonic's mind it looked like he’d done it thousands of times because of how effortless he’d looked. He made a couple more, all slightly different, and all getting that stupid toothy smile when Shadow decided they looked good. He could see the little fangs Shadow tried to hide, he was smiling so big. Though he didn’t find that cute. At all. </p><p> </p><p>Maybe, he’d get really good at icing cupcakes and surprise Shadow with something like this someday, too. </p><p> </p><p>Maybe, he’d get Shadow to smile that wide, just by being next to him.</p><p> </p><p>Maybe one day he’d get him to smile that big all of the time. </p><p>***</p><p>Amy came home while they were still cleaning up, both of them jumping in surprise and scampering off to hide the tupperware full of cupcakes somewhere she wouldn’t see. </p><p> </p><p>By the time the girl had opened the door, a big bag of party supplies in her hand, Sonic and his rival were bickering over something as they washed dishes. They moved in perfect sync, she noticed. Without looking down, the hero could scrub off a plate and hand it to Shadow to wash off, giving him what she assumed to be a glare as he would do so without taking his eyes away. </p><p> </p><p>Even now, she was bewildered by how much they got along with each other when they felt like it. The pink haired girl wasn’t oblivious to the fond smiles the hero shot at his rival when he thought he wasn’t looking. She smiled to herself, shaking her head.</p><p> </p><p>Those two were idiots. </p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>Amy started crying when she saw the things they had made, pizza in hand. Much to Sonic’s delight, it was <em> not </em> tears of shame. </p><p> </p><p>“You two are literally the best people I have <em> ever </em> let mooch in my house.” She sniffled through a grin, wrapping her arms around Sonic before dragging Shadow over to her so she could hug him to. The hero snorted to himself sheepishly as he watched the boy stiffen in confusion at the action. Clearly, he wasn’t used to getting so much affection in one sitting. Maybe <em> ever.  </em></p><p> </p><p>He shoved another cupcake in his mouth with a hum. They were surprisingly fluffy, and somehow he’d managed to not burn them. </p><p> </p><p>It made him happy to see the two of them were more comfortable around each other now, it would have made this whole adventure <em> so </em> much more complicated if they’d spent the whole time fighting. </p><p> </p><p>He’d have to thank him for that too when they got back. </p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>A few more hours passed, after a good helping of icing and giggling, Amy had decided it was time for her to go to bed, thanking them profusely for helping her out over the past few weeks and promising to visit as soon as she could once they eventually were able to come home. </p><p> </p><p>Now, he and Shadow were sitting on her fluffy couch in the dark. The light from her modest TV was the only thing brightening the room as the sun rapidly set on one of their last days staying with the Heroine. </p><p> </p><p>Right now though, he had bigger problems to worry about, the most urgent being the fact that the agent was nearly four places in front of him in a racing game <em> he </em> had suggested playing. There was no way he was going to be beaten by an emo who up until about three weeks ago had never held a video game controller before. </p><p> </p><p>He jabbed his rival in the side slightly, causing him to jump in confusion and giving Sonic just enough time to get in front of him.  </p><p> </p><p>“Hey! Now you’re just cheating!” The agent scowled, only getting a smug grin in response. He could almost <em> hear </em> the eye roll without looking at it. </p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>“What?!” He gaped at the screen and then back at the hedgehog sitting besides him. “Fourth?! How on Mobius did I-” </p><p> </p><p>Sonic stopped in the middle of his sentence as he looked over to see his friend giggling in glee, bending over to try and catch his breath. It was such a genuine and carefree one, too. Not a trace of bitterness in his voice, it sounded so charmingly sweet, sounded so much like he’d always pictured Shadow’s laugh, and yet it <em> still </em>shocked him how cute it was. The way the corners of his mouth twitched into a grin, the tired smile etched it’s way in the hero’s mind, feeling heat rise to his cheeks.</p><p> </p><p>It couldn’t have lasted more than a few seconds, but it left him star-struck all the same. So <em> that </em> was the weird bubbling he got in his chest. Shadow had an infectious laugh, that’s all. That’s why his heart was pounding so hard he was worried it might burst out of his chest. </p><p> </p><p>That's why as he lay in bed an hour later, a goofy grin was still stuck on his face, why that tiny burst of happiness still rang in his ears as if he’d never heard anything more pretty, and cocky, and <em> cute.  </em></p><p> </p><p>And oh<em> god </em> , he wanted to hear it again. And <em> again </em> and <em> again </em> and <em> again. </em> Wanted to make Shadow laugh so hard he would snort, if he had to hear it a hundred times he wouldn’t mind. Would even welcome it, even. </p><p> </p><p>He wanted to make him smile like that<em> all </em> the time. Wanted to hold his hands and kiss him as hard and as long as he could, to melt in his arms and never get up again. He wanted to wrap him up in sweaters went it was cold, wanted to give him flowers, and go on dates, and be <em> stupid </em> and <em> corny </em> and <em> dumb. </em> Wanted to run his hands through those quills and hear him snort and do the same. Wanted to watch movies and read books and just sit and talk and <em> laugh </em>with him, because he never does those things on his own. Wanted to make that stupid, terrible, kissable face stop frowning for a little bit so he could pull him by the chin and tell him he was perfect and amazing and made his heart melt every time Sonic saw him.  </p><p> </p><p>Because he was probably the prettiest dumb ass he’d ever laid eyes on, and probably ever would. </p><p> </p><p>He slumped into his pillow, still grinning like an idiot, but he didn’t even care anymore. </p><p> </p><p>Alright. So maybe, <em> maybe, </em>he had a tiny crush on Shadow. </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Okay my friends and comrades, i got some news. </p><p>I think this might have to be the last chapter for a little while, because I got some things going on that aren't particularly groovin happening at the moment... but! I promise I'm not gonna abandon you forever. It just that I think I'd rather finish up a couple things that I'm not very happy with before I post them, and I think I'd rather wait a couple more weeks than I prefer than put something up I knew wasn't ready yet... :(  </p><p>Anyway, I hope you enjoyed, because I sure have a lot of fun writing this thing. Also, thank you for the comments and suggestions and stuff! Be safe out there, okayyyy? </p><p>Be back as soon as I can ! ;)  &lt;3 &lt;3 &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. The Blues Are Always the Worst</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Sometimes past trauma ends up biting you in the ass, which always sucks. But, if people stuck through it with you, sometimes it sucks a little less.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>OHHH MY GOD I ACTUALLY UPDATED SOMETHING??? And it's ANGSTY SORTA? Absolutely bonkers. Love you all &lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Blue. That was the first thing he remembers as he ran, heart beating faster in his chest. A familiar one, the kind of blue that should have given him a nostalgic, almost sentimental feeling. So why was he so afraid? </p><p> </p><p>Everything felt blurry, the harsh lights sparking erratically above him as he pulled the hand grabbing him tightly along for dear life. His throat burned, his limbs screamed at him to stop but he knew if he did, he wouldn’t make it out of this corridor alive. </p><p> </p><p>It was loud. Too loud. The normal, quiet hum of his home was replaced with a chaos he could barely process as he went, screams of fright echoed through the halls. Ears flattening at the sound of shattering glass, what could they possibly be doing? He wondered, why were those people here in the first place? The sound of thudding boots was drawing nearer, the mechanical dull stomp of what sounded like a small army pounding at the same pace of his heart. He heard her shoes soft clicks along the metal floor, cringing as she stumbled slightly, her heels were always a little too big. He held her hand a little tighter. </p><p> </p><p>Panic was pooling in his stomach as he dashed through another large set of doors, skidding to a halt as he realized he’d led them to another dead end. <em> Focus! </em> His brain screamed, but the alarm in his gut was muddling his senses. He felt his legs freeze up from fright. Everything felt fuzzy and unnatural, he must have walked these rooms a hundred times, so why couldn’t he remember where he could go? </p><p> </p><p>He threw himself back into a sprint as the sound of gunshots snapped him out of his standstill, despite the protest in his limbs. This wasn’t good. Things were worse than he had originally thought they were. He needed to get her somewhere safe and <em> now. </em> The only thing keeping him going was the adrenaline pumping through his veins, the tiny voice in his head that was rapidly growing louder telling him <em> They’re going to kill you. This is it. You're not going to make it out. </em>He could feel his body shaking, or maybe it was hers. Maybe both. He was so scared, so much more than he had ever been before. </p><p> </p><p>He heard a muffled pair of voices, booming throughout the metal walls. They were close. In alarm, he swerved into a nearby door and shut it, suppressing the histeriya outside. Now she was shaking, he could tell. She was trying to be brave, trying to stay calm, but her eyes told another story. Those ocean blue eyes were so frightened, her face was so pale. She was holding onto his hand so tightly. She was scared, too. </p><p> </p><p>He slumped up against the wall, trying to catch his breath. Trying to push down the vomit rising in his throat from running for so long. He had to be strong right now, she was counting on him. He couldn’t let her down. Now was not the time to get cold feet.</p><p> </p><p>Already, he knew he’d made a mistake the minute he’d seen the stars. Usually, he would have been stunned by their beauty, he’d always like looking at the way they glowed against the black backdrop of space. She’d taught him a few of her favorite constellations. He shouldn’t have come to the Ark’s deck, there were no good exits. He knew that he should have tried to find the professor as soon as he’d realized something was wrong. That is, if he was still alive. If someone opened the door and found them in there, the only way out was through the pods. The pods that went back to Earth, the pods that she was too weak to use. That was out of the question. He <em> wasn’t </em> about to just leave her behind. They were going to make it out of here, they’d be okay. They <em> had </em> to. She’d promised him she’d teach him some more about the planets, he’d promised her that he would make her some more cookies. They weren’t about to die. </p><p> </p><p>Instead, he opted for silently begging them to not open the door. Not yet, at least. Give him just a <em> few </em> more minutes so he could figure out what his next move was going to be. A little bit more time so he could clear his head, make a plan. A little longer so she could catch her breath. Shoot. He regretted not making her take her medicine today. Begging <em> whoever </em>would listen to Not. Open. That. Door. </p><p> </p><p>Luck was not on his side. </p><p> </p><p>Suddenly, an authoritarian voice shouted, they were too close for comfort. They needed to go. And yet, before he had time to react, he was being shoved into a pod. Those small, shaking hands pushed him with all of their might and forced him to stumble up against the cool glass. What was she thinking? Did she really think it was worth the risk to go to Earth? She wasn’t ready yet, she could get sick. He remembers calling her name, frantically asking her to let him out because they didn’t have <em> time </em> for this. This wasn’t going to work. Even if she <em> could </em>make it in a pod, there still wouldn’t be anyone out there to release it. </p><p> </p><p>Unless she didn’t plan on going in one herself. </p><p> </p><p>She wasn’t even <em> near </em>the pods, in fact. She was standing next to the control panels, chest heaving as she tried to catch her breath. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Oh god, she didn’t plan on going in one herself.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>Panic pooled in his stomach. He remembers slamming up against the glass, begging her to let him out. There was still time! He could save them both! She gave him a weak smile, hands clenched into fists on the table. Even now, she was still trying to be brave. She knew she was going to die. </p><p> </p><p>“Shadow, I-I need you to promise me something.” She said firmly, though her voice still trembled as she fumbled through her words.</p><p> </p><p>“Please, give all of those people down there a chance, t-to be happy, okay? I need you to tell me, t-that one day it’s gonna be alright. A-and you’ll protect them, no matter what, u-understand?” She was biting back tears, she was scared. It sounded like she was trying to assure them both that he would. </p><p> </p><p>He gave her a soft nod, arms slipping to his side. It was too late. Even till the very end, she was stubborn. There was no way to protect her. They were just on the other side of that flimsy door now, he could hear them pounding on it. He wanted to scream, wanted to tell her he was going to be okay, but he was stuck. Petrified in his place, shaking. His cheeks felt wet. When had he started crying? </p><p> </p><p>Abruptly, the door was slammed open. A group of men stood in the hallway, covered in armor with the words G.U.N scrawled across the chest. Faces hidden behind bulky, expressionless helmets. She jumped slightly at the noise, hand still clutching the lever as she turned to face them. </p><p> </p><p>He remembers them barking something at her, but it wasn’t clear. His head was swimming, hands shaking.</p><p> </p><p> <em> This isn’t real, this can’t be! I just need a few more minutes, that's all. Just a few more and I’ll be able to get us both out. </em></p><p> </p><p>“No!” He sobbed. <em> I have to save her! I must save her! I have to- </em></p><p> </p><p>A single shot rang out through the room. A red stain seeped through her dress, her favorite dress. Seeping through that pretty blue fabric. The one she’d worn for so many years, the one she’d loved so much she’d tried to sew a second one. The dress she baked in and danced in and dreamed in. Now it was ruined. They’d torn it and stained it so much she would never be able to wear it again. Blood dripped down her mouth as she struggled to stand. </p><p> </p><p>“...S-sayonara, Shadow the hedgehog…” She gasped, pulling the lever down with her last bit of strength before slumping to the ground.</p><p> </p><p>He watched in horror as the pod fell through the floor, she gave him a pained smile, before closing her eyes. </p><p> </p><p>“MARIA!” </p><p> </p><p>“Oh Shadow…  you really are <em> pathetic, </em> aren’t you?”</p><p> </p><p>Shadow woke up with a jolt, barely able to breath. His eyes stung as he struggled to calm down. <em> Yourfineeverythingsfineyourokayjustbreatheandyou’llbefine. </em>He desperately repeated to himself, his heartbeat pounding so loud in his ears he was sure it filled the whole room. </p><p> </p><p>Shakly, he wrapped his arms around his knees. Covered in a cold sweat he squeezed his eyes shut, forcing himself to breath in and out. That’s right. He could do this. Nothing to worry about as long as he remembered to breathe. A few seconds past, and slowly, he stood up from the bed. He gulped, rubbing his arms to make the chill in them go away. It didn’t help.</p><p>He glanced over to the bed on the other side of the room, but there was no movement. Sonic hadn’t noticed again. That was good, at least. He shouldn’t be bothering him either way. He let out a sigh of relief and opened the door. </p><p> </p><p>This wasn’t the first time Shadow had had that dream, and it wasn’t the first time he’d woken up at four AM, shivering in panic. In fact, it wasn’t even the first time he’d done it this week.</p><p> </p><p>He stumbled his way into the kitchen, trying to drown his unease with a glass of water. The agent’s legs felt like jello. It didn’t help either. He could barely keep it in his hands without dropping it.</p><p> </p><p>He made his way through the dark house until he reached the living room. The bright lights from the city outside glowed through the closed blinds. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow slumped onto the ground in front of the couch, emotionally and physically exhausted. He traced the rim of his glass with his finger, silently kicking himself for letting it happen again. </p><p>
  <em> Look at yourself! You can’t even hold a glass of water still without shaking. Everything about this is pathetic and you know it. She’s right. You deserve this. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>He sighed and crumpled into a ball. This was nearly the eighth day in a row he’d done the same thing. Everytime he tried to go to sleep, he saw her. </p><p> </p><p>Ever since he regained his memories, Shadow had been plagued by those memories, they still felt so <em> vivid, </em> so <em> real, </em> it felt like he was reliving them all over again. Rationally, he knew it wasn’t, though. It was in the past. He couldn’t change what had already happened, right? But no matter how many times he told himself that, it never stopped scaring him. It was still his fault.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> You’re pathetic. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>She hadn’t said it then, not once. But he knew it, deep down. She would never tell him he had failed her. But he<em> had, </em> hadn’t he? </p><p> </p><p>Maria would be disappointed in him.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> You’re pathetic. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>Because she <em> had </em> to be right. Things were going too smoothly right now. He’d fuck up one way or another, and soon. Why couldn’t Sonic just leave him alone? Why did he always have to weasel his way into his head like this? How was <em> this </em> fair? He thought bitterly. </p><p> </p><p>He already knew what he had to do, though. There was no beating around the bush this time, he had to get out of here. He’d have to transfer. It was the only way he could get his mind away from thinking about him, the only way he could get out of this mess before he made things worse. </p><p> </p><p>Shadow <em> knew </em> it was cowardly, <em> knew </em> it was shitty to just get up and leave. But he didn’t have a choice, did he? He <em> wasn’t </em> like Sonic, he couldn’t be that carefree, couldn’t just get up and tell him something like that. </p><p> </p><p>He really didn’t need to get his heart broken all over again. </p><p> </p><p>His heart felt hollow, it usually did after he had dreams like that. His thoughts slowed along with his heartbeat, leaving an empty hole in his gut. It hurt to think. Maybe it would be better if he just tried to get his mind off of it right now, anyway. At least he wasn’t shaking anymore. Closing his eyes, he leaned back against the couch.</p><p> </p><p>And like everyday before it, prepared for a long, sleepless night. </p><p>
  <em>Click.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>His ears twitched at the soft noise. Shadow had left, again. </p><p> </p><p>A pool of worry bubbled in his chest, but he slumped farther down into the sheets, squeezing his eyes shut. <em> It’s none of your business, Sonic. It’s </em> <b> <em> really</em> </b> <em> none of your business, Sonic. You’re only gonna make things worse for him. </em>He bit the inside of his cheek in annoyance. This wasn’t the first time he’d heard that door quietly latch in the middle of the night.  </p><p> </p><p>At first, he hadn’t noticed it. The two of them occasionally worked together before and he didn’t find anything weird, either. Trying to handle exploring and getting from point A to point B in a timely manner was enough to leave him exhausted, and as soon as they would turn in for the night he’d be out cold within the first few minutes. He’d assumed that the circles under his rival’s eyes were similar to his own, just a little unrested, but overall nothing of note. But after a few days, he started to notice something. Something felt a little… off. </p><p> </p><p>Sometimes Shadow would spend a little too long glaring off at walls, or how his usually perfect form was ever so slightly shaken when they fought. Every time Sonic would loudly announce that he was going to sleep, the agent would blink a little slower and a little frown slid across his face, but it was only for a split second. Eventually, he started questioning how the hedgehog seemingly never went to bed before two but always woke up <em> hours </em>before him, too. So naturally, he decided he’d beat him to it.</p><p> </p><p>After drinking nearly an entire pot of coffee, something he immediately regretted for more reasons than one, he had sat in his bed and listened for an hour just to see what Shadow was doing. He was planning on making a one sided game out of it, originally. He’d challenge the agent to some kind of stupid bet once he finally figured out his secret technique for getting up so early, see who could get up at some ungodly time, a game that he would inevitably regret less than an hour later. It didn’t really go how he planned. </p><p> </p><p>At some point, still buzzing from caffeine, Sonic heard Shadow finally open the door and slump into bed, though he didn’t look over to see. The only problem was, even with all of the effort he’d put into staying awake, he was <em> still </em> tired. Not to mention how warm and toasty his bed was… </p><p> </p><p>It only took a couple more minutes of struggling to keep his eyes open until he fell asleep, only to be awoken hours later to the sound of someone jolting upright. </p><p> </p><p>Almost immediately, Sonic registered that something wasn’t right. It sounded almost like the boy sitting only a few feet away was choking. Gasping for air through short breaths and stifling back a sob. A <em> sob. </em> Shadow wasn’t someone who cried easily, or at <em> all </em> for that matter. He’d only seen it happen once. Something was definitely wrong. </p><p> </p><p>He curled up into himself, pulling the blankets around him closer to his head. This really wasn’t good, he shouldn’t be here right now. It was probably humiliating enough to have to deal with nightmares on it’s own, let alone with a blundering dope like him sitting halfway across the room. He didn’t dare look up, didn’t dare make his presence be known. He wasn’t even sure Shadow knew he was here right now. </p><p> </p><p>Nightmares were pretty common, everyone had them once and a while, himself included. He’d never been ashamed of them, always told Tails that it was perfectly <em> fine </em>to ask for help when you needed it, but he figured Shadow wouldn’t feel the same. Once Amy had stayed up until five AM with him for a week straight because of them, needless to say, she wasn’t very peppy for a while. But there wasn’t anything wrong with them. They were normal. </p><p> </p><p>But <em> this </em> wasn’t. </p><p> </p><p>Because it<em> wasn’t </em> just a one off scary dream, where the agent could just huddle into a pile of his friend’s hugs until he fell back asleep, couldn’t deal with it the same way <em> he </em> did because he didn’t have a Tails or an Amy. Rouge, maybe. But Shadow was too stubborn to ask for help either way. He wasn’t oblivious to the uncomfortable demeanor he got when Sonic made him hang out with his friends, because that wasn’t the way he did things. Shadow the Hedgehog is <em> not </em> someone who asks for anything from anyone.</p><p> </p><p>Eventually, Sonic heard the agent slide out of bed and hastily walk off towards the door. He shut gingerly with a click. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Click.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>So now, here he was again. That initial panic and confusion from the first time had slowly been replaced by a dull, ache in his chest. A mix of disappointment and guilt. By now it was routine, he should just expect it by now, but every time he still had a <em> tiny </em>bit of hope that this would be the day. But it never came.</p><p> </p><p>He wanted to kick himself for not doing anything. Wanted to kick himself for not just getting up and asking the <em> first </em>time he had been woken up, instead of just sitting there like an asshole. </p><p> </p><p>Which was what he was doing right now. Sitting there like an asshole. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> No, this is stupid. It’s none of your business and you know it.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> So you're just gonna keep letting your friend suffer all alone then? </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> I’m not! Of course i want to… but if he wanted help, he would ask for it.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> You know that’s not true.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Ugh! Shut up, brain. Let’s just go back to sleep and think about it in the morning.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> So you’re just gonna keep ignoring it until it goes away? </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> No! I already told you! I want to help but… I don’t even know what to do! I don’t know what to say, either!  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>He bit the inside of his cheek so hard it stung. Grimacing when he tasted copper. This wasn’t the right time. Maybe he’d ask Shadow tomorrow, or maybe after they came home. Maybe if he waited long enough he could just forget about it happening and then he wouldn’t have to-</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Click. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>His ears twitched at the noise, snapping him out of his thoughts. </p><p> </p><p>Instead of being in his bed, somehow he looked up to find himself leaning up against the wooden door leading into the hallway. His legs had made the decision on their own that he’d go talk to Shadow. He took a shaky sigh and peered out into the dark hall. One of the kitchen lights was on, but there was no one standing in it. For a second he worried that he might have just taken off and disappeared, they did have a chaos emerald after all. He could be looking for Shadow all night, but the more he pressed on, the more his gut urged him forward. Until he stood, staring at the white trim on the doorway of the living room, the top of a pair of ears barely poking up from the top of Amy’s pink couch.</p><p> </p><p>This wasn’t going to last forever, he knew that. This mission would eventually end, and they would go back to their normal routine of everyday life. They were already drawing closer, he could feel it in the smirk in Rouge’s tone when they spoke. They had figured something out, and soon this whole adventure would be done. Everything that had happened in the past few weeks would end. He dreaded it, almost. Because he knew it meant things would go back to the way they were, Shadow always had G.U.N missions, always had a place to be. He’d leave just as soon as he’d come back. </p><p> </p><p>And what if one day he <em> never </em> came back at all?</p><p> </p><p>That was something that scared him a lot more than he cared to admit. </p><p> </p><p>So <em> that </em> was why he walked hesitantly through the rooms of Amy’s dark house at four in the morning. <em> That </em> was why he was mentally preparing himself to sit there and wait all night. Because he couldn’t let Shadow leave when he was down, not again.</p><p> </p><p>He’d make sure he would come home without regrets this time.</p><p> </p><p>So, finally pushing through his last bit of hesitation, he walked through the doorway.</p><p> </p><p> The room was dark. The only light coming from the large windows facing out towards the city, the soft glow painting the nearby area in a pale yellow. Sonic squinted, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the lighting as he stepped forward gingerly.</p><p> </p><p>No response. </p><p> </p><p>He found Shadow facing away from him, leaning up against the couch from his position on the floor with his arms curled around his knees. Even his eyes were dulled over, their normal fiery stare replaced with a lifeless, almost grey, a blank expression on his lips as he sat. Staring down into the carpet to his side as he traced the rim of an empty glass with his finger again and again and again, almost robotically. </p><p> </p><p>“...Hey.” he said softly, cringing when the agent flinched from the sudden disturbance. </p><p>Another few seconds of silence. This was going to be harder than he first thought. </p><p> </p><p>He didn’t look up. Didn’t move at all, in fact. He watched as an emotion flashed in his eyes for a split second before disappearing again into the dull red of his irises. Guilt almost? The boy looked more rigid than before, almost like a block of wood. Even from the side, the hero could tell he was glaring down at the floor, he assumed from annoyance. Neither of them moved a muscle, Sonic’s eyes still trained on his rival, his eyes still trained on the floor. </p><p> </p><p>“...Mind if I sit down?” He said tentatively with a half glum smile, looking down at his friend in understanding. The agent didn’t look up to meet his gaze, instead focusing purely on staring down at the glass in between his hands. The two of them stayed that way for a few seconds, a heavy silence drifting above their heads, before he heard a sigh. </p><p> </p><p>“Knock yourself out.” The answer was clipped, a hint of salt laced in the words, but he wasn’t going to push it. Even if they just ended up sitting side by side until 6 AM, at least Shadow wouldn’t have to be alone. He slid down next to the boy anyway.</p><p> </p><p>He slid down onto the floor next to him cross legged. Following Shadow’s lead and staring out the window at the buildings just outside their room. The silence was mixed, an uneasy but slightly comforting feeling, Shadow wasn’t much of a talker on the best of days. He always said it was better than listening to him blabber on all day. He wasn’t really sure what he was going to say, so he decided to keep his mouth shut. </p><p> </p><p>That might have been a bit of an understatement, but he didn’t need to know that. </p><p> </p><p>“Shadow?” He said softly, watching as the boy cringed slightly at the sudden noise, but didn’t acknowledge it any further.</p><p> </p><p>More silence. Sonic didn’t look over to face the hedgehog, instead focusing on the soft glow from the panels of glass in front of them, the far away bustle of the hectic noise from outside. Only the faint rumble of cars seeping in through the walls. The light pollution and smog dimming the usually bright stars in the dark blue sky, it reminded him of home, in a way. He felt a pang of longing to come back to his own bed, his own house, but it drained away as fast as it had come. </p><p> </p><p>“It’s really pretty out tonight.” He observed in an almost whisper, only realizing he’d said it out loud when he saw a small nod from the corner of his eye before the two sunk back into the stillness of their surroundings. A sense of semi sweet tranquility in the air. </p><p> </p><p>“...what are you doing out here?” Sonic glanced to the side, Shadow’s eyes were still trained on the glass in his hands, a lifeless expression on his face as he stared. </p><p> </p><p>“What do you mean?” The hero asked, watching curiously at the side of his rival’s head. He let out another tired sigh, still expressionless. </p><p> </p><p>“What are you <em> doing </em> out here? We have a mission to get done tomorrow.” He repeated coolly. </p><p> </p><p>He bit the inside of his cheek. <em> Oh, so we’re doing this again. </em> Sonic knew that tone well enough. The one that Shadow used to use whenever they spoke, the one he uses when he feels <em> threatened. </em>He felt a twist in his gut. </p><p> </p><p>“Because I was worried about you. I... wanted to see if you were doing okay.” He answered, furrowing his eyebrows slightly. </p><p> </p><p>He heard a scoff, and was almost one hundred percent sure he got an eye roll, too. </p><p> </p><p>“I'm not a <em> child </em>, what I do is none of your business. You should go back to sleep while you still can, we’re leaving first thing in the morning.” He said through a tight scowl. </p><p> </p><p>“You don’t have to be a kid to get help, you know.” He huffed in annoyance. </p><p> </p><p>“What are you implying?” Shadow nearly growled, finally turning to look Sonic in the face.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m not <em> implying </em> anything. All I’m saying is that something were up and you <em> wanted </em>to talk about it-” </p><p> </p><p>“I <em> don’t </em> okay? I’m fine. Just go back to bed, Sonic.” He said a little louder, turning his head back to stare off in front of him. </p><p> </p><p>“Shadow come on, I know<em> something’s </em> bothering you.” </p><p> </p><p>“I don’t want to talk about it.”</p><p> </p><p>“Dude, we <em> all </em> have nights like this sometimes, it’s <em> really </em> nothing to be ashamed of-”</p><p> </p><p>“I <b> <em>said </em> </b> I Don’t. Want. To. Talk. About. It.” He seethed, shoving himself off the ground, staring directly into Sonic’s eyes. They were wide, even in the dim light he could see the fear in his eyes, the undeniable <em> shame </em> written across his face that he tried to hide under anger. Even from here, he could tell how much Shadow was shaking. His hands squeezed into tight balls, his chest heaving rapidly as he stood. He was about one sentence from boiling over. Red still pupils flicking up and down at his face, Shadow turned to walk away.</p><p> </p><p> In a second of desperation, Sonic grabbed his wrist, the agent snapping his head to turn back to him in alarm. “Wait, Shadow! I’ll drop it okay? Y-you don’t have to talk about it if you aren’t ready. I promise I… I didn’t mean it to be like this, I was just <em> worried-”  </em></p><p> </p><p>Instantly, the agent’s body tensed up, trying to free himself from the touch. “I don’t <em> want </em>your fucking pity, hedgehog.” He snapped, finally ripping his arm away from the touch, shaking. </p><p> </p><p>Sonic flinched at the impact, drawing away slightly. He wasn’t sure what stung more though. </p><p> </p><p>He narrowed his eyes. The anger written across his face still hung around him hollow. </p><p> </p><p>“Shadow, it’s <em> not. </em> I’m worried because you’re my <em> friend </em> . And I care about you, we all do. That’s <em> not pity. </em> There’s nothing wrong with needing help sometimes. I-I can help you, but <em> please, </em>you have to tell me what’s wrong. </p><p> </p><p>“Jesus christ, Sonic, just <em> stop. </em> Go away. <em> Please. </em> I just...I-I can’t do this. <em> ” </em>Shadow said sharply, visibly shaking. He stared down at the floor, clenching and unclenching his hands, his eyes tightly shut.</p><p> </p><p>Sonic stared at the agent, speechless. He’d never seen him act like this before, he seemed so defenseless. He desperately wanted to help, but had no clue <em> how. </em> The room fell silent again.</p><p> </p><p>“I-im sorry. I didn’t mean what I said. I should know better, I know what you mean, but…” He gulped meekly and let out another shaky breath.</p><p> </p><p>“I just… I don’t know what to do anymore.” He tried to push down a sob. His ears flattened. “I’m just <em> so </em> fucking <em> tired </em> and <em> lonely </em> and... no matter what I do it never goes away. I’ve been trying so hard… but it doesn’t matter. It always ends up the same. I can’t do <em> anything. </em> I can’t be happy, I can’t have that privilege anymore. I fucked up one too many times and now I have repent. Maria was just so kind...and she...she was just a <em> kid </em> . She was my only friend, my <em> best friend. </em>” Tears splattered onto the sheets in front of his knees. He tried to wipe off his tears, but it didn’t help. </p><p> </p><p>He let out a bitter laugh, scrubbing his hands around his eyes. “I deserve this, right? I don’t deserve to have you, or Rouge... I couldn’t save her, this is my punishment. It has to be. No matter what I do she’ll never come back. I’ll never see Maria again, <em>I’m the reason she’s dead.</em> And I won’t be able to save you either, Sonic. I just… I <em>can’t.</em> I can’t risk failing. Not again.<em>” </em></p><p>He understood. Not well enough, but he had lost people, too. He would try his best to understand. Sonic softly pulled his arms around the dark hero, and hugged him. He could tell the agent was trying to resist the urge to pull away.</p><p> </p><p> “<em> It’s not your fault, Shadow. It never was.” </em>He whispered. He felt tears slip onto his chest and Shadow sobbed. For the first time in a long time, he let himself cry.</p><p> </p><p>Finally, the agent hugged back, but it still felt stiff. They sat there for a long time, in the dark. A mix of embarrassment and sympathy bubbly in his chest. Now was <em> definitely </em>not the time to be gawking about how warm hugging that stiff as a board hedgehog was.</p><p> </p><p>His heart ached, feeling a sad smile making its way onto his lips. Shadow felt so small and fragile in his arms, like at any moment he could shatter. It was clear he wasn’t used to doing this, the way he just <em> barely </em> held on, but it still felt like he was ready to run away at any moment. Sonic had <em> never </em>seen this side to his rival. Only the cocky and condescending Shadow, the Ultimate Lifeform. Someone who cared about nothing and no one unless they gave him some sort of benefit. </p><p> </p><p>But at the same time, he felt as though he already knew.</p><p> </p><p> This weird sense of clarity came with this realization, because of <em> course </em> Shadow wouldn’t be able to handle all of this on his own. No one would be. He was just a kid like him, after all. </p><p> </p><p>As he mulled questions around in his head, he noticed how Shadow’s shaking lessened, his breaths slowed. Sonic held him a bit tighter than before, and wondered when the last time he got a hug like <em> this </em> was. He felt Shadow subconsciously sink deeper into his chest. He snorted softly, letting out a sigh.</p><p> </p><p><em> How could one hedgehog be so wrong? </em> He thought. <em> Pathetic? Shadow’s one of the bravest people I’ve ever met! He’s selfless and stupid and annoying and perfect and way too cute for his own good. He deserves the world, how could he not see all of that?  </em></p><p> </p><p>He pouted, it really did bother him quite a bit. He decided that one day, he’d tell Shadow every single thing that made him so great, though he knew it might take a while. It honestly baffled him that his friends, and even <em> him </em>at one point, had considered Shadow to be such a bad person. He was still having trouble putting it into words just how much he cared about that blockhead. </p><p> </p><p>“Goodnight, dummy.” He said cooed quietly, though he figured his friend had already fallen asleep. Good. He’d had a crappy night.</p><p> </p><p>He wondered how many other crappy nights like this Shadow must have gone through alone, sitting in that Ark, or at G.U.N. Wondered how many other days he must have felt so helpless. And as his own eyelids grew heavy, he slumped up against Shadow, resting his chin on top of the boy's head, and made a silent promise to himself that he would never have one again.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Sorry for such a long ass break!!! I swear I did not mean to get so distracted, but I promise this fic hasn't been abandoned- so I hope you enjoy some over the top melodrama. I'm actually pretty close to finishing this bad boy so hopefully there will be more chapters this month. </p><p>As always comments and kudos are greatly appreciated! Stay safe!!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. The Beginning of the End</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Though the pair's mission seems to be coming to a close, it feels like their troubles are only just starting.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hello again! I know updates are incredibly slow but I am a short angry gay boy with the attention span of a goldfish so thank you for sticking with me. </p><p>This chapter is probably full of spelling mistakes because I had to write 90% of it in the car, so I APOLOGIZE IN ADVANCE. Also it might be kinda longer than usual??? It feels longer at least?? So maybe that'll make up for some of it??? Maybe??? </p><p>Anyway- enjoy!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The first thing he remembers doing as he woke up was admire just how warm his bed was. Eyes still closed, he silently thanked his decision making from last night that decided he wasn’t going to spend another sunrise still awake, and being so since about twenty three hours beforehand. Part of his brain was yelling at him for being so lazy, especially on a day like today. They were finally meeting back up with Rouge, finally getting on with what they had come here for in the first place, and here he was, barely holding onto consciousness as the inviting warmth from the blankets drew him back in. It was a little strange, though. He didn’t remember the sheets of his bed being so fuzzy, or so soft, or smelling like cinnamon. Maybe Amy had washed them while they were away. She was a pretty nice girl, after all. Still though, he knew it was probably time to get on with his day, no matter how inviting the idea of slipping back into another few minutes of sleep was.</p><p>In the pit of his stomach he could think of another reason he wasn’t willing to get up. Because getting up meant that he’d have to start coming to terms with the fact that it was time to go, whether he wanted to or not anymore. And maybe, just maybe, he didn’t want this strange bubbly feeling in his stomach to go away just yet, maybe he didn’t want to have to face the fact that soon he’d be back in that cheap, dirty, room that smelled like dust and oil and sweat. All alone in those grey walls all over again, alone. He was going to be all alone again. That hole in his heart would come back, just as it always did. Because no matter what anyone said, he knew, deep down, it was where someone like him was meant to be.</p><p>But for now, he didn’t have to think about that. He could just squeeze his eyes shut a little harder and pretend that this snug warmth would stay with him forever, seeping into all of his limbs making the perpetual coldness of his insides melt from the bizarre security he felt. The cozy pillow he had half smushed into the side of his cheek, the way that the blankets seemed to hug his waist, or the assuring and steady breaths that matched his own.</p><p>Wait a second. What…?</p><p>His eyelids shot up in a moment of brief panic that was immediately confirmed as his vision was filled with blue. A very obnoxiously familiar blue to be more precise. And immediately, he felt his entire face blush in embarrassment and horror, because he had not done the smart thing he had thought he’d done and gone to bed, and he had certainly not gone to sleep at an reasonable hour at all last night, be he had admitted the most embarrassing and stupid thing he could think of in front of Sonic, who he had somehow ended up mushing into his side, while the dumb ass himself, drooling slightly might he add, somehow ended up wrapping his arms around Shadow into a hug.</p><p>And suddenly, he wasn’t exactly wishing to spend anymore time pressed up against the back of the couch and the hero who had let him sob for probably way too long, and immediately attempted to squirm his way out of the loving death grip he was forced into. When attempting to peel off the limbs around his waist didn’t work, he used his only other method of evasion and used his leg to kick the hero off the couch and onto the floor, where he slid down into the carpet with a soft thud. He cringed slightly at the tired groan of annoyance coming from the ground, but took his opportunity to make his escape before Sonic questioned him anymore than he would already.</p><p>He slid off the couch with a sigh, a dull, heavy ache in his limbs. He glanced back at the couch, Sonic was laying face first into the shag carpet that Amy vacuumed everyday at four pm, arms covering his head from the bright sunlight creeping in from the large windows. Shadow furrowed his eyebrows, a part of him knew he should be happy. Things were finally getting moving, he’d see Rouge again, finally get some action, but he just felt hollow.</p><p>It was like getting told that someone had done all of this just because they knew it would just make whatever came next hurt worse.</p><p>Maybe it was for the best, though. He wasn’t sure. His head hurt.</p><p>He shoved the last of his belongings in his backpack, not that there was much to look at anyway. All he’d taken with him was a couple of water bottles, emergency supplies, and of course, a chaos emerald. He grinned as he picked it up, the gem hummed in his hand from chaos energy, filling his arms with a familiar tingle that set his nerves on fire. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to fight after all, considering.</p><p>There was one last thing he grabbed, before he walked back out into the living room to wake up the other two. A piece of paper. Crumpled, with creases on top of crease from when he’d nervously folded it up and flattened it out again. Still, the words shone quite boldly on the top of the page, glaring at him with a sense of warning he chose to ignore.</p><p>EMPLOYEE TRANSFER REQUEST</p><p>He still hadn’t filled it out. Every time he tried, he just couldn’t do it. Even though he knew that he should soon, he only had a few more weeks to turn it in. There wasn’t a single part of him that wanted to go away, but at the same time he had to. He really only had one option at this point.</p><p>But...something about yesterday made him feel differently.</p><p>Maybe it was better if that sheet just stayed blank after all.</p><p>He shook it off, shoving the papers back into their once neat folder and hastily finished checking for anything he may have missed around the room before he came back in the living room and dragged Sonic off of the floor, chewing him out for not bothering to pack despite such a long notice.</p><p> </p><p>It felt natural, lying on his bed and watching as the hero packed as they bickered between themselves.</p><p>“You know Shadow, I really don’t get why they couldn’t have just told us to get up a couple of hours later. We’ve already waited a week and a half, so why couldn’t we wait a little longer?” Sonic said through a grin, shoving another pair of socks into his backpack.</p><p>Shadow rolled his eyes, smiling inwardly as he rolled onto his stomach to watch him meticulously eye a pair of gloves that refused to cooperate as Sonic tried to fold them up, until he finally gave up, wadded them into a ball, and haphazardly crammed them into his worn out backpack. The straps were faded and ripped, clearly very well loved, and also clearly overstuffed, seeing as he struggled to close the zipper with only half of the pile of clashing colour and patterns of clothes Shadow could have sworn he’d never seen Sonic wear.</p><p>“Come on, Sonic! A little fresh air will do you two good!” Amy weaved through the mess of fabric that littered the floor with three steaming cups of something that the agent couldn’t quite make out. It smelled good though, “Now hurry up so I can send you two off properly.” She grinned, pushing a mug into both of their hands.</p><p>They both quickly thanked her, and almost immediately the hedgehog had drained half of the glass in a single gulp. “Excuse you! I am in absolutely no rush to leave the comfort of my lovely friend’s home just to go kick some ass.”</p><p>“More like to get your ass kicked.” Shadow chimed in, watching as Sonic’s face contorted into that lopsided smirk he wore so well.</p><p>Yeah. Okay, so maybe he had some stupid butterflies in his stomach whenever he smiled like that. Whatever. Doesn’t mean anything.</p><p>They both knew better, though. Sonic was probably more restless than he had been in weeks. At least judging by the fact that he was almost vibrating from energy at the thought of getting into a fight. He was too, to be fair, but at the same time, he worried. He hadn’t slept for more than three hours in a single night for about a month. All he could do I pray that he’d be able to complete his responsibilities without too much trouble.</p><p>She rolled her eyes in doubt, snorting. “Oh yeah? Come on, you’re not even a little bit excited to finally get some action?”</p><p>“Not really! You have better video games here.” The hero said, pulling Shadow out of his thoughts. “But…. I know someone who is…” He drawled out in a singsong voice as he exaggeratedly turned over to face Shadow with wide eyes.</p><p>He felt his turn to goo, but kept his bored expression as he replied without a beat, “If I have to watch you lose that fucking cart game one more time I am going to blow my brains out.” Watching in amusement as Sonic gasped in pretend shock.</p><p>“It’s only because you cheat all the time!” He whined, a huge grin still plastered on his face.</p><p>“I do not! You’re just sour because you suck so hard that even I can beat you!”</p><p>“How could you accuse me of such a thing, Shadow?! I thought we were friends! Comrades on and off the battlefield!” He slumped onto his back, as the agent laughed, sliding onto the floor next to the blue asshole currently moping in a pile of forgotten clothes.</p><p>“Well clearly you thought wrong.” He said, watching as his eyes lit up in fake shock, he continued, “You really should have seen this coming by now. Anyway, hurry up before Amy kicks us out herself.” He pulled Sonic up by a gloved hand, another smile on his lips that Shadow chose to ignore in the only way he knew how, chucking a discarded shirt square in his face as Sonic laughed. Oh god, he was grinning again, wasn’t he? Chaos he was doomed…</p><p>“Okay okay! I surrender! No more goofing off, got it!” He giggled, throwing his hands up in mock surrender. That only made the two of them smile harder at each other as Shadow shoved another pair of pants that Sonic would never wear into a dirty old backpack that had seen better days, and suddenly he really, really, wished this wouldn’t have to end.</p><p>“You really hate having fun, huh?” Sonic sighed dramatically, still grinning like he was having the most fun he’d had in months.</p><p>“Of course! The CEO of killjoys, in fact.”</p><p>“Come on, you idiots. Stop flirting with each other and let the poor boy pack.” Amy cut in, snapping their heads in her direction as Sonic pouted.</p><p>“Haha, very funny Amy.” He glowered.</p><p>“Indeed! Shadow, drink your hot cocoa before it gets cold.” She laughed.</p><p>Begrudgingly, he obliged, trying to not feel that hot bubbling embarrassment oozing from his stomach. She was just joking. She didn’t know any better. Unsurprisingly, it didn’t help his current state of mind. At least it was warm.</p><p>Before he could continue sulking in his own thoughts, his communicator went off.</p><p>It was time.</p><p>The beginning of the end.</p><p> </p><p>Two days later</p><p> </p><p>The hideout that Eggman supposedly had been working in for the past few months was a lot less glamorous than Shadow had been expecting, especially considering who had built it. All that was visible was a banged up metal door protruding from the ground, green from rust, and a few stray pieces of scrap metal that had littered themselves across the forest floor as it slowly deteriorated, crudely crammed in between a few tree trunks that must have been twenty times his height in an otherwise harmless looking woods nestled out a hour away from the city.</p><p>“Before you ask, it’s old. They’re saying that it may have been one of the first ones Eggman started using. But that doesn’t mean you get to do anything reckless.” Rouge’s calming voice crackled through the comms, answering the other agent’s question before he even had time to say it.</p><p>“I don’t understand what we’re waiting for, in that case. I still have my doubts that Robotnick is here at all, let alone in some bunker eight miles from all of his other locations.” He hissed in a half whisper. Shadow could feel Sonic mindlessly shifting from one position to another as they crouched along the undergrowth. Watching, waiting, for something to happen that would give them the all clear.</p><p>“I do as well, hon. But it’s better to check and end up wrong than to leave anything up to that buffoon. And either way, we both know his plans are usually… a little more than meets the eye…” She continued warily.</p><p>He eyed Sonic, still vaguely paying attention, but mostly trying to sit still. They’d been at it for nearly five hours, observing the surrounding area and trying to get a good grasp on the situation they were plunging themselves head first into, which was in no way a strategy the blue hedgehog was used to or appreciated, but sadly he couldn't go off on his own this time. G.U.N. did missions with precision, or at least that’s what he’s always been told.</p><p>“Anyway,” The bat continued, sensing the growing restlessness in their patience, “We have no idea what’s down there, even after trying multiple different scanners and mapping systems, we can’t tell a damn thing. Even Tails hasn’t been able to detect more than the direct entrance from the cellar door, so anything’s possible.” He watched the sides of his companion’s mouth twitch upwards at the mention of his brother.</p><p>“So what’s the plan exactly?” Sonic mused, grin still playing on his lips as he watched the door with slightly raised eyebrows.</p><p>“We need you to get inside and retrieve something for us, alright? It’s a small USB port that apparently has vital information G.U.N needs for an upcoming plan they have, but I don’t know exactly what we’re planning on doing with it.” The bat continued. “After that, you two will have to find and hold Eggman down, or at the very least stall him until we can bring more forces in and arrest him properly.” She says as a tired sigh crackles over the speakers.</p><p>“It’s vital that you retrieve the USB port before Eggman realizes you’re there, because he’ll erase whatever’s on it as soon as he does. This has to be done quickly and quietly, alright?”</p><p>“Where is it?” Shadow asked with narrowed eyes.</p><p>“Computer room near the main entrance. I can’t give you an exact location, but it shouldn’t be far from there, if this one is still in use at all. The layout’s pretty similar to the base we went to a few missions ago, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to find.”</p><p>The hero glanced back over curiously. “So… just check if there’s a port thingy and arrest Egghead if we find him? That sounds easy enough.” Shadow watched him smirk as their eyes met.</p><p>Another sigh. “Yes, if everything goes to plan at least. So stay put until I contact you again, am I clear? We’re going in pretty blindly this time, so we need to take more outcomes into consideration. Stay here, and watch for any kinds of movements or suspicious activities going on. It may be a while, but I need you both to stay calm and try not to rip each other’s head’s off, okay? I’m counting on you two. Any questions?”</p><p>"So we're doing a stake out?" Sonic questioned with his eyes now trained intently on the door.</p><p>"Yes. We're doing a stake out"</p><p> </p><p>Another hour passed, and then another, and the longer the pair knelt in the bushes, eyes firmly trained on the cellar doors, the lower the sun hung in the sky above them, casting an orange glow across the trees.</p><p>Sonic was growing more and more inpatient with every second that ticked by. Their last conversation with Rouge had been short and he could tell that she was getting frustrated as well, but he still itched to get up and leave. Or maybe kick something.</p><p>Shadow gave him a wary look as he shifted in his stance for probably the fourteenth time in the last few minutes, but still didn’t bother to comment.</p><p>Inwardly, he wondered if the agent would have a few weeks ago, if he would have talked to him at all, that is. It was probably a petty thought, he understood that something was going on well enough to instantly regret thinking like that, Shadow sucked at telling his friends what was wrong. And yes they were friends. Sometimes he wondered what the agent was thinking behind that intense stare of his, it still felt like he was constantly on edge.</p><p>He furrowed his eyebrows slightly, before turning back to the main focus of their attention.</p><p>Still just as unassuming as it had been before.</p><p>"Shadow?" He whispered, green eyes flicking back to meet red. "There's nothing here."</p><p>The agent sighed in annoyance, before giving him a grimace that told him he agreed.</p><p>"I think we should just check it out." Sonic said as he peeked back over the top of the hedges, back over to the banged up door that he absently thought looked more like a junk pile than a secret base of a borderline sadistic scientist. "Go see if we can pry it open with something."</p><p>"No." Shadow scowled, "We're doing this the way we were ordered to, Sonic. Any other time, you can go get your ass blown up and shot at as much as you want, but I cannot afford to get into any more shit because we go along with all of your reckless and stupid ideas."</p><p>He grinned. "Why's that? We always make it out okay, don't we?"</p><p>His friend rolled his eyes, "Barely, you asshole. We've been looking for this base for nearly a week and a half, do you really think you couldn't wait an hour longer?" He continued in a low voice.</p><p>"No, not really." The blue hedgehog chirped. "And Rouge said it herself that the chances of him being here weren't that high…so…" Unfazed by the blank look on his partners face. "What do you say?"</p><p>He let out a defeated sigh. "You know, I'm genuinely impressed that you managed to last this long without doing anything stupid, so fine. But if you die or some shit I am not taking responsibility for that, or whatever screaming match you'll end up with against the board of directors if we make it back out." He said with his eyes still fixed to the hero as he switched the communicator on his wrist off.</p><p>"Agreed." Sonic smiled. "And anyway, you have nothing to worry about! I trust you."</p><p>Shadow blinked, eyes flashing with an unreadable look before returning back to his usual expression of slight disinterest in a matter of seconds, but Sonic still caught it and inwardly scolded himself for saying it out loud. Just because he admitted to maybe, sorta, having a thing for him did not give him permission to start saying weird things that made his insides constrict in on themselves.</p><p>He hopped out of his hiding spot with little grace, and more confidence than he really felt after slipping like that, but he quickly put it in the back of his mind as the excited adrenaline of what may be to come flooded his system.</p><p>Maybe he hadn't been ready to leave just yet, maybe he really wasn't ready to leave shadow yet, (because they clearly still had a lot of talking to do), but he was not opposed to doing some ass kicking today.</p><p>If he was gonna have to leave it all anyway, he might as well give it his all, too.</p><p> </p><p>Inside the rusted cellar was almost as inconspicuous as the outside. A dusty, dark room that was only brightened by the stream of light from the doorway behind them. It reminded Sonic a little of a tomb. Cement covered the floors and the walls, and scarcely anything was in the room at all, the middle of the room completely barren of any kinds of furniture or signs of life at all. And being well acquainted with Eggman also meant knowing the way he operated- extremely over the top and flamboyant. This didn’t have any of his usual pizzazz to it, in fact it seemed fairly harmless. Shelves of unlabeled bottles lined the walls and everything seemed to be covered in a thin layer of dirt, as if the room hadn't been disturbed in a long, long, time.</p><p>"This… doesn't feel right." Shadow began slowly as his eyes surveyed the room from wall to wall, as if expecting something to jump out from the shadows if he turned his back on them.</p><p>Sonic nodded and slid a finger across one of the walls, staring down at the small mark of dirt it left on his glove. "I think Rouge’s on to something this time, It seems like someone's purposefully trying to make it look abandoned."</p><p>"And we have a pretty good guess at who that someone is." The agent replied.</p><p>“Indeed we do.” The hero whistled as his eyes traced the ceiling from one end to another, despite being so cramped they practically had to lean over to avoid banging their heads into the wooden planks lining it.</p><p>“We should look around and see if anything looks out of the ordinary, or recently touched.” Shadow nodded before crouching down lower to examine a crate shoved up against one of the corners.</p><p>He turned and continued walking along the edges of the space, observing what appeared to be a couple more stacks of papers and junk, a few unlabeled sacks of what appeared to be flour, until finally he made his way back to the wall directly across from the cellar door, back in front of the wall of bottles.</p><p>He eyed them with furrowed brows, stepping forward to pull one from its place and swirling the dark liquid at the bottom with suspicion. It looked like wine, at least through the foggy glass, and after popping the cork off and wrinkling his nose at the smell there left no doubt. Yup, that’s definitely wine.</p><p>“Didn’t know old Egghead was a drinker.” Sonic hesitated.</p><p>“Certainly… wouldn’t be too out of place I suppose. He doesn’t seem to get his way very often.” Shadow replied with a snort.</p><p>Sonic turned his attention back to the rack, peering through the space to the wall behind, cocking his head. Eyes trailing down to the floor, they flicked to the corner of the nearest shelve, they stood floor to ceiling, only a few inches of space between each structure, but between them were skid marks.</p><p>“Oh shit! Shadow come look at this.” The hero called from over his shoulder, pointing at the tracks left behind in the dust as if the whole thing had been swung forward like a door.</p><p>Like a secret door.</p><p>They glanced at each other, and silently each took a hold on the side and pulled. There was a creak, but slowly and surely, it dragged forward, until the hinges wouldn’t allow it to go any further.</p><p>Inwardly, he braced himself for something to lunge at them where they stood, but it never came. The only thing that stood before the two of them was the dimly lit corridor, so dark that it almost looked black in the fading sunlight from outside.</p><p>“Ready?” Shadow asked.</p><p>“Ready as I’ll ever be.” He breathed.</p><p>And with that, they stepped in.</p><p> </p><p>Shadow blinked as his eyes adjusted to the room, squinting in the hopeless attempt to get back all of his senses. The musty smell of earth and rot was almost suffocating as he breathed in and out, this entire place gave him a bad feeling all over again. The cramped squeeze that only seemed to get narrower and narrower as he led the way down the dirty cement floor almost left him completely blind and defenseless, hands pressed against the walls as they hurried down the path. The only thing that kept the agent in check was the muted scraping of shoes against the floor behind him and a muttered swear that made him smirk.<br/>Sonic had tripped over a root.</p><p>He found himself in an almost haze, with no way of telling how far they had gone or how long it had been since they had begun; he let himself fall into a rhythm of uneasy restlessness. The only sound was the soft thudding of his chest and their breathing mixing with the unnatural quiet of this dank, cold, cellar.</p><p>And then suddenly, the walls were pulling away from his outstretched hands.</p><p>Or more accurately, the entire walkway was starting to spread itself outwards, curving away from his arms as what had once the two of them had barely been able to walk down single file was slowly expanding until the floor had a good five feet of space on each side of them.</p><p>Then, he realized that not only was this passage stretching towards as they walked it, but downwards as well. What was at first a barely noticeable bend was now becoming a rapidly steep hill that bent at twisted this way and that as they kept going down, farther and farther into the earth.</p><p>Before he even knew what was happening, he stopped dead in his tracks and gently nudged Sonic beside him to do the same. He blinked in the dark for a second, before reaching out in front of him, and then taking a few cautious steps forward.</p><p>“What are you doing?” Sonic whispered out from behind him, and without being able to see him Shadow knew he was making a face.</p><p>He ignored the question for a second, he needed to see if his hunch was right first. A few more footsteps later and his hand was suddenly met with a hard surface, the cold seeping into his gloved hand.</p><p>Grinning, he looked back towards where he assumed Sonic’s general shape to be, “Look, there’s another door.”</p><p>Another pause, before the hedgehog felt something that felt suspiciously like an arm being shoved up next where he was standing.</p><p>“You’re right! And look- there’s light on the other side.” And Shadow was pretty sure he saw him nodding, looking downwards he noticed in to- a small sliver of some kind of yellow glow was seeping in and landing on their shoes.</p><p>“Come on, help me open this thing, it feels stuck.” Sonic continued, prompting the agent to lean in closer and grab onto the handle next to him and push.</p><p>Heaving the combination of their weight on it made the metal groan, but it barely budged. Another shove, and still nothing.</p><p>Grunting from the effort, the blue hedgehog gasped out “Shads, I really don’t think this is going to wor-” before the whole thing swung out from underneath them and sent the two of them leaning forwards outside and onto the tile floors below.</p><p>The silence they had been walking in suddenly replaced by mechanical whirring, metallic clanging, and the hum of motors running and bouncing through Shadow’s flattening ears they fell out of their hiding place and onto the floor, quickly he grabbed Sonic’s arm and shoved them both behind the door they had just come from, eyes stinging from the blinding artificial light bombarded over his head.</p><p>“Stay low.” He said in a hushed tone, and the hedgehog gave him a quick nod before they both peeked out from behind their hiding spot.</p><p>To say that the room they had fallen in was big would be a bit of an understatement, a warehouse was probably more accurate, Sonic thought. The ceiling stretched upwards for miles above their heads, tubes and wires and littered the floor near what appeared to be convert belts and an abundance of metallic junk all lathered in garishly bright coats of paint that nearly stung his eyes as much as the bright lights overhead did. The whole thing must have been at least 40 yards if not more so to compensate for the abundance of robots sliding across the floors on blackened wheels, weaving through the motor and steam powered appliances built into the floor.</p><p>It was loud, abrasive, and needlessly flamboyant in a way that screamed they'd definitely made it to the right place.</p><p>Luckily the door they had come in through wasn't near the main bustling going on as Eggman's glassy eyed robots worked in unsettling unison, and they had made their entrance about as unnoticed as the hero could hope for, and it seemed like Shadow wanted to keep it that way.</p><p>"Here," he whispered, holding out his hand for Sonic hold as his eyes still peered around cautiously, "This will go a lot faster if you don't run off and try to get yourself killed."</p><p>The hedgehog grinned down at the gesture for a second before doing the same which made his insides decide they should do some rearranging without his permission again, inwardly cursing his friend for being so confusing as he was quickly tugged along across the tile floors.</p><p>He shook his head, snapping himself back into a slightly less out if wack state of mind.</p><p>Now is not the time to start getting distracted, dude! This is purely professional.</p><p>…. Purely professional hand holding.</p><p>He decided to end that train wreck of a thought before it could go any further for the sake of his sanity, instead narrowing his eyes as they skidded across the ground as they silently made their way along the sidelines of the walls unnoticed until reaching a large stairwell near the back wall, away from most of the noise and commotion. The noise faded the farther up they went, step after step, only to quickly be replaced by more metallic booms and the familiar sounds of machinery down the halls.</p><p>Each room was similar to the last, Sonic noted absently, as he smacked a robot that was straying towards their current hiding place to pieces and ducked back out into another doorway. Shadow was slinking through each one with a kind of practiced ease a little ahead of him which made him silently wonder if sneaking around Eggman’s bases was something he ended up doing a lot. Sonic was more of a just bust in and smash everything kind of guy, rather than the careful, calculating movements he was currently witnessing before him. Sliding across the shining floor and around the bright flashing lights they whipped by fast enough to make each area a blur of colors and distorted shapes passing through his vision, and the agent kept skidding effortlessly around turns and bends in the layout of rooms which apparently he’d never been in before. He was still holding firmly on his partner’s hand, red eyes occasionally glancing back to check up on him with an unreadable expression which he found to be equal parts amusing and annoying.</p><p>A few more minutes of sneaking around through passageways and quietly disposing of anything that could potentially draw attention to themselves, and Sonic was feeling the initial excitement of breaking and entering beginning to wear off. Replaced instead with an impatient need to move that left the blood pumping through his veins boiling and sizzling uncomfortably through his limbs.</p><p>Shadow ducked quickly through another hall, eyes scanning intently as they passed a collection of doorways that branched out into more hallways expanding outwards and away from them, watching all of the identical rooms pass through was dizzying and unsettling. They'd moved away from the loud machinery and movement they'd initially been met with, the bright colors and noises replaced by identical silvery floors and the hum of fluorescent lights up above. Suddenly, the agent slowed his pace and tugged them both through a door near the end of the row before stopping to check to make sure they hadn't been spotted.</p><p>"Look." The agent said, pointing up towards the corner of the ceiling facing the back wall to a small grate. "That part of the ventilation system should drop us directly into the room we're looking for if I'm right. Give me a hand here."</p><p>Sonic was pulled over the tiles before he leaned down on one knee and laced his fingers together to create a makeshift step ladder for Shadow to use the hop up and flip open the grated door before hoisting himself inside with practiced grace, a few moments later an outstretched hand reappeared from the hole in the ceiling which he took as an offer to lift himself inside as well, seeing as without the extra foot of height he provided neither of them would have been able to get up there in the first place. He took it graciously. No homo.</p><p>Shuffling through the air vents of a barely used base wasn't nearly as pleasant as it seemed to be in theory, he quickly realized this as the hero tried to blink about four different cobwebs from his eyes as they went. The humid temperature up here and the three inch layer of dust that lay against every side of this metal enclosure was surely doing wonders to his appearance.</p><p>"So, you certainly seem to know where we're going dude. Why is that? This place looks absolutely massive." Sonic questioned.</p><p>He heard a snort from a little ways ahead of him before Shadow replied,"We end up going through a lot of Eggman's bases at G.U.N for a lot of different reasons. He's made a ton of them, but when he was first starting off a lot of them had similar layouts to each other, so once you've memorized one, you've memorized at least a dozen others if you're looking in the right place."</p><p>His partner hummed in thought. "I guess that makes sense. But didn't Rouge say something about a front entrance? If they knew where that was why did they want us going through an abandoned cellar?"</p><p>Shadow hesitated for a moment before replying,"...It's hard to say for certain. My best guess is that it had something to do with security. A lot of his usual areas have been deserted, so he's bound to have more guards. We've already had a few close calls with them so far anyway, so they may just be taking precautions."</p><p>The hedgehog nodded, brows furrowed in thought. "It's just... All of this seems kind of tame, I guess. I mean, what was the purpose of dragging me along if all we needed to do was grab some information Eggman's been withholding? You could easily do that by yourself. Not that I'm complaining, obviously."</p><p>He heard Shadow sigh before replying warily, "I really wish I had an answer to that. For now, i guess we'll just have to wait and see, but I have a bad feeling about all of this."</p><p>"You have a bad feeling about everything, dude." Sonic's mouth twitched upwards as two blood red eyes turned back to glance at his own green ones, "Yeah, and I'm usually right." The agent said with a grim look before turning onto his side to kick the grate out from under his feet with a clang, before sliding his lithe body down through the small hole.</p><p>The hero stopped pulling himself forward with his elbows to stare at the space where his partner had just been moments ago, mulling over his words in his mind.</p><p>"Coming?"</p><p>The familiar flat tone called up from below him, slightly muffled from the over sized hamster tube he had stopped in, and effectively pulled him out of his thoughts as he followed suit and slid to the tile floor. Whatever was going on, there was nothing he could do about it right now. He turned to meet his dark furred friend's questioning gaze with a playful smirk, though his gut told him Shadow's track record of predicting foreboding events wasn't about to be broken.</p><p> </p><p>"Alright," Shadow said about five different encounters with Badnicks and what felt like at least another five miles of walking down hallways later, "The room we're looking for should be just up ahead."</p><p>Both of them were covered in a slimy layer of machine oil and cobwebs from head to toe at this point, and he was pretty sure the only remotely clean part left on his body was his right palm, just because Shadow had been holding onto it for the majority of the trip. It looked kind of ridiculous, the small semi white hand print surrounded by an otherwise entirely grey glove. It made him grin a little.</p><p>He sped up a bit more to trail after the hedgehog past another corridor before finally stopping in front of a monotonous looking room with a large door and a slightly intimidating looking window with dark glass just to the right of it, so dark that he could barely peek past his own reflection to see what was on the other side.</p><p>Upon closer inspection, the pair soon realized that the door was in fact, locked. Of course.</p><p>Shadow was still fumbling over by the blocked off opening, jamming something into the keyhole of the doorknob when the hero's ears twitched at the metallic echo of footsteps steadily drawing closer to their destination, so unnaturally even that he instantly recognized it as one of Eggman's robots as he instinctively flattened himself up against the cold glass.</p><p>"Shit! What are we supposed to do now?" He hissed, his heart beat had been steadily growing faster over the course of breaking into Eggman's base, and now it felt too loud and uneven as he glanced over at his partner with an unusual amount of urgency.</p><p>"Dont panic on me just yet, hedgehog." Shadow said, eyes narrowing in frustration as he jiggled the thin piece of metal, "Buy me a couple of minutes. I should be able to get this open pretty quickly."</p><p>He nodded with a half grin as he started walking backward and off towards the noise with his eyes still fixed on the agent, "I should be able to handle that."</p><p>Said agent glanced back towards him with an amused smirk. "Attaboy Sonic, now get the fuck out of here."</p><p>He rolled his eyes but followed the advice without anymore comments, hastily padding his way back across the tile floors until he reached a bend. Peeking over the corner he spotted what looked to be another one of eggman's creations slowly moving across the ground in a slow, mechanic fashion as its glassy red eyes scanned lifelessly across the dull walls with a low hum.</p><p>The hero watched it intently for a few seconds, watching as the robot droned onward towards his hiding space but gave no indication that he'd been spotted. He noticed something slightly...unusual about this particular garishly painted Badnick, most notably was a small blinking light near the top of its head, which was something he'd never noticed before. Sonic frowned, trying to remember the other robots he'd encountered over the years and wondering why this one in particular felt so odd for some reason.</p><p>Eventually though, after it had dubbed the hallway as clear, the thing turned its back on him, the hedgehog leapt out from across the floor and gave it a swift kick in the head and sent it flying into one of the beige walls in a pile of junk metal and bolts. Ah, the wonders of cheap materials.</p><p>With That, he was about to turn back and call it a job well done when he noticed that even now, reduced to a pile of circuit boards and wires, the light was still blinking. Sonic furrowed his eyebrows, suddenly getting the feeling that something was very unsettling about that. But after a few more moments of uneasy listening to the quiet empty halls, he heard nothing. No more Badnicks wandered his way, no one jumped out at him, nothing.</p><p>Cautiously, he jogged back to meet Shadow with a pit on his stomach fully expecting impending doom with every fall of his feet.</p><p>At this point, he decided, maybe getting the hell out of here as quickly as possible wasn't such a bad idea after all.</p><p>He rejoined Shadow to find that not only had neither of the encountered any further trouble, but that the agent had managed to successfully open the door. The agent swung it open once Sonic reached the end of the corridor where he was waiting, holding his hand out in an after you gesture. Sonic smirked and obliged.</p><p>The first thing he noticed about the room once the yellow lights flickered on overhead with a hum was not only it’s size, but the wide array of control panels and wide, dark screens that hung on the walls overhead. It reminded Sonic a little of old sci-fi movie sets that thought the future of technology was to slap a ridiculous amount of buttons to every surface and call it a day. There were quite a lot of buttons. There were also a lot of cabinets and bits and bobs of broken robot junk scattered on the tables near the center of the carpeted floors. The room didn’t look well used, but it was certainly a newer addition compared to the rest of the hideout he’d observed so far.</p><p>Another important fact the duo noticed was that space, which the hero had decided must be used as some kind of surveillance room, was dead silent.</p><p>It didn’t seem like the kind of place that should be left empty, he thought, especially if it really was the hiding spot of such crucial information that even G.U.N needed for some reason. They frowned at one another for a moment, Shadow was obviously sharing a similar thought.</p><p>“How about… I’ll stay over here and watch the door just in case. You look for the USB stick since you at least have a general idea about the layout of this joint.” Sonic said, and the hedgehog across from him nodded, then turned to crouch down and search through one of the shelves nearest to the entrance of the room.</p><p>“Sounds good to me.” He agreed, blood red eyes scanning the room hesitantly in narrowed slits. “Just… be careful, alright? My communicator isn’t working because of how deep underground we are, so if things get dicey, we’re completely on our own until we can reach the surface again. Everything already has gone far too smoothly for my tastes.”</p><p>The hero stayed silent, his gaze alternating from the left and right sides of the hall, but he couldn't help but agree.</p><p>“There's a door over here that's been glued closed!” Shadow says after he searched about a quarter of the room. Sonic pulls his head back to the doorway to ask, “you think it's the one?”</p><p>“Almost certainly.” He replies, “Do you think you can come over and give me a hand?”</p><p>He shuts the door, hesitates for a moment before dragging one of the filing cabinets across the room and in front of it like a barricade. Better safe than sorry he thinks, and then walks over to the door Shadow standing next to. At the bottom of one of the control panels is another much smaller door, near the floor that his partner is currently staring at</p><p>They both kneel down, each sliding their fingers into the groove of the panel and pulling hard until it gives with a loud snap.</p><p>“Yeah, okay that has to be it right?” Sonic asks looking down at the small USB stick sitting in the narrow hole, just kind of… laying in there. Shadow nods. “I'd assume so. Move out of the way, I'm going to check for anything suspicious before we get the hell out of here.”</p><p>He rolled his eyes, but hopped out of the way regardless. A feeling of relief briefly washing over him, as his friend rummaged around with the serious look on his face that made the hero smirk fondly. Then something caught his eye. There was a vent in the corner of the wall, a few feet away from where the agent was doing Shadow things that he had no chance of figuring out how they were useful, but probably were anyway. At first it didn't seem like anything special, but now, eyebrows narrowed, he saw it.</p><p>There was a small orange light like the one he saw before blinking in between the metal grates, and it seemed to be moving towards him. And then another one appeared, and then another, and then more after that.</p><p>His eyes widened in realization has a thought hit him like a ton of bricks- he shouldn't have just been worried about closing off the door</p><p>Abruptly, he shoved Shadow out of the way, their eyes snapping up words to meet for a split second before the grate slammed open against the wall with a loud clang, and something was dragging him inside.</p><p>Well, shit.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>"Gay gay homosexual gay"<br/>- William Shakespeare</p><p> </p><p>PS- Happy spring everybody!! How on Earth has it almost been a year since I started writing this??</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. We're Gonna Be Just Fine</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>*muffled sounds of someone slamming into a wall* hoNEY LOOK NEW PENGUIN JUST DROPPED</p>
<p> </p>
<p>https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/feb/26/strange-pale-penguin-rare-yellow-and-white-bird-discovered-among-king-penguins-in-atlantic</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Shadow has been full on sprinting for the better part of what feels like twenty minutes, but it could be anywhere from five to an hour. He really hasn’t been thinking about much other than the adrenaline pumping through his veins and the the sheer </span>
  <em>
    <span>need</span>
  </em>
  <span> to figure out wherever the fuck Sonic got yanked to, and get the hell out of here. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The USB stick is still in his palm, but it’s the least of his priorities at this point. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His insides have been boiling with a special brand of frenzied resentment that almost always gets him into more trouble, but he’s not thinking clearly enough to stop and calm himself down enough to think of an actual plan of action. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Which is probably how he ends up kicking down a pair of double doors to find Eggman himself lounging in one of the largest rooms he’s ever been in, complete with all the usual gaudy and over the top pipes, shoots, and contraptions that glitter brightly as over the walls and floor. The man grins at him, lips curling up maliciously as Robotnick stares down at Shadow with beady little eyes filled with amusement. He’s sitting in one of his own creations, hovering a couple of feet off the ground, and Sonic is nowhere in sight. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Where is he?” The boy spits with narrowed eyes. Eggman keeps smiling. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Now that’s now way to talk to your hosts, now is it Shadow?” He says flatly. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At this point the agent is almost seeing red as he seethes, “I don’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>care</span>
  </em>
  <span> and I don’t have time for this, old man. Tell me where the hell you took him before I tear this entire base apart.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He rolls his eyes, “Jesus, why do you always have to be such a grouch? You break into </span>
  <em>
    <span>my </span>
  </em>
  <span>base and demand to see where your little boyfriend is, the one that you took along specifically to help you steal from me? Fine. You can see him if you like.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>That grin only widens as Eggman gestures to a wall in the side of the room that hums, and  slowly begins moving apart, behind it is a glass wall that shimmers and wobbles under the harsh lighting, and behind that is a small figure dashing around, pummeling and shattering a hoard of robots that are crawling out of the floor. Sonic is whooping, hollering, and needling his captor as he yells are muffled from behind the barrier, “Is this really the best you got?! I can kick Badnick ass all day long!” And as if to prove his point, he kicks one of them into the glass with a loud bang before it shatters into an array of bolts and sparks. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What the hell do you want, Robotnic? Let him go.” The agent glares, in any other situation he might have found Sonic’s overenthusiastic nature a little amusing but currently all he’s feeling is nerves that he’s steeled into a burning loathing for the fat old man that's eyeing the two of them gleefully. He steps forward, and the man only bursts out into a cackle. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I wouldn’t do that if I were you!” He mocks, “The closer you get to me the more of my little friends Sonic will have to deal with.” And as if on cue, another swarm of robots wash over the hero in a wave of glossy metal that swallows his entire body for a moment, before he kicks his way back the the surface in a flurry of flailing limbs and squawks out through pants,”Don’t listen to him dude, I’m fine! Just grab him and we can both find a way out of here!” A pair of pincers somewhere underneath Sonic’s feet shoot up to grab hold of one of his ears in an attempt to drag him back down, but the hedgehog catches it in time to pull the body out of the pile and send it skidding back across the floor. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“The authorities will be here any second to come take you away.” He scowls, even though they both know that isn’t true- he hopes that maybe bluffing will give him enough time to think of a way to get his partner somewhere safe, but his brain feels like it’s trying to rip in half and his heart’s beating so erratically in his chest he worries that he’ll end up doing something he regrets. G.U.N doesn’t know where any of them are, and he’s all alone on this one. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Screw it, he’s already going to get chewed out anyway, they might as well get back on the surface </span>
  <em>
    <span>alive. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He flings himself forward, veering off to the side to rip a piece of piping out of place and sends it flying towards Eggman as he ducks out of the way of what he can only describe as a laser beam that nearly singes off his head, leaving scorch marks all over the ground and the walls. There are Badnicks pouring in from the doorway now, he can hear the loud mechanical whirring bounce around inside of his skull as pure chaos breaks out from every side around him. He can only imagine that Sonic is facing something similar as he dives and swerves and blindly shoves past the growing hoards of machine clawing at his arms and legs, he pushes by them without much notice, focusing solely on the old man watching it all unfold. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shadow knows he doesn’t have enough time, he knows Sonic won’t be able to keep pushing himself much longer, he’s already been going at it for who knows for how long, but he also trusts the boy with his life and he thinks that he might feel the same. So he keeps pushing past the burning in his limbs and the cacophony of noise until he finally lunges blindly towards the floating machine the man is sitting in. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It takes the both of them by surprise, Shadow slamming himself against the side of the vehicle with enough force to nearly topple it onto its side. He nearly falls off again, but he keeps his grip around the metal and swings his legs over the edge and lands inside it with a thud.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span> Everything that happens in the next few seconds blur together and muddy, he remembers glancing up to see Sonic still fighting, but he’s tired and all his movements are slowing down while his amount of foes only doubles, triples, with every ragged breath of air he takes. They are everywhere, so many swarming the floor that he can barely make out where one ends and another begins. He remembers scrambling back to his feet and jumping away from the hands trying to grab at him, and then Sonic letting out a yelp of pain somewhere that tapers off into loud swearing. Something in him snaps, and he punches the flesh of the man still trying to drag him away and digs his fingers into the control panel at the front of the machine, ripping it off with all his might before he’s hurled out of it entirely in a rainbow of sparks and wires and his body crashes against the glass. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pain shoots up through his back and skull, vision blackening for a split second as his mind spins in a grey haze. He can hear more swearing, this time from Eggman, but he can’t make out the words. The agent closes his eyes like that will make the need to throw up that burns in his throat dissipate. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Panting, he shakily stands to his feet to realize that the noise is gone. The room is silent save for the sound of his heart pounding in his chest, and though the floor is littered with broken parts, the robots have vanished. And then, there’s whirring behind him, and he turns to see the glass wall lowering down back into the floor. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His friend is sitting in there, holding his leg with a pained expression as he whispers out a stream of </span>
  <em>
    <span>ow ow ow fuck ouch </span>
  </em>
  <span>under his breath. He doesn’t look good, Shadow thinks. They need to leave, with or without arresting that fat asshole. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The hedgehog is stumbling over his own feet as he tries to make it over to Sonic, his legs are shaking but not as badly as they were a few moments ago, and then Eggman speaks again. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You both are quite the pair of assholes when you combine forces, huh?” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shadow ignores him, instead leaning down to ask, “You alright?” And the hero nods, whispering back, “Fine… I think. A little banged up but nothing to-” He winces when he tries to stand on it, and the boy stops him. “Dammit, your ankle looks broken. Don’t move, okay?” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The hedgehog is about to say something in protest, but he’s cut off by Eggman, who’s clearly annoyed at being ignored. “Hey! You two! I’m talking to you.” Shadow rolls his eyes. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“First you keep shoving your noses around my bases, break into </span>
  <em>
    <span>this </span>
  </em>
  <span>one through an old passage I forgot I’d even put there, and now you won’t even look at me. Though…” He trails off as if going into thought. Both boys warily glance in his direction, and he grins. “I’m surprised, Sonic. I can understand why Shadow is so shamelessly throwing away his morals, but </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span>? I honestly expected better from you.”  </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Sonic glances between the two in confusion, arms wrapping back around to protect his hurt leg. “What are you talking about?” He frowns, eyebrows narrowing. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Glee flashes across Eggman’s features. “Oh </span>
  <em>
    <span>really?</span>
  </em>
  <span> You didn’t tell him what G.U.N sent you to go find for them?” He asks, and Shadow glares at him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Wait…” The hedgehog puts a hand on his arm. “You told me you didn’t know either! You don't, right?” He questions and he shakes his head fiercely. “I </span>
  <em>
    <span>don’t. </span>
  </em>
  <span>G.U.N never gives me any useless fucking information!” Shadow shouts. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Ahhh,” The man says, “Now that’s fun! They’re organization just finds more and more ways to be scumbags, huh? And you two idiots didn’t see it until it was too late, it looks like. How tragic! News flash you overgrown pairs of rats, they’ve been using you to help with their sleazy oil schemes, not stopping </span>
  <em>
    <span>me</span>
  </em>
  <span> from anything.” He cackles. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They both whip their heads around to look at each other with wide eyes. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>What?!” “</span>
  </em>
  <span>What the </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck?!”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh my, you should see the looks on your goddamn faces, wow! While you two have been bumbling around the city looking for clues for a wild goose chase, </span>
  <em>
    <span>they’ve </span>
  </em>
  <span>been running about snatching up my robots for what I can only assume would be profit, it’s gotten so bad that I had to recall nearly a third of my team back into </span>
  <em>
    <span>this </span>
  </em>
  <span>old dump. Which leads us to here,” Eggman barks out a wicked laugh, eyes gleaming as he stares down at the two like cockroaches, “G.U.N forcing its own members to do their dirty work for them while I was innocently watching from the sidelines. The USB stick, wherever it may be now, has information on the location of where I stashed a few tons of oil a couple years back, which they have been eagerly trying to get their claws on for god knows how long.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The duo stay still, speechless and confused as waves of bewilderment morph into betrayal in the pit of Shadow’s stomach. Eggman continues, “Look, you can keep it if you want, it can be my way of saying sorry… and a farewell present if you will.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“... A farewell present?” Sonic asks cautiously and he nods. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Why, yes! A farewell present. In exactly three minutes the entire base is set to explode, sorry. I </span>
  <em>
    <span>would </span>
  </em>
  <span>turn it off, but it looks like somebody ripped the button that stops it, how unfortunate for you two!” He hops down from the sparking rubble of his hovercraft, and the floor around him starts to sink under, leaving the boys watching as he disappears under the ground. “It's funny, but I </span>
  <em>
    <span>really </span>
  </em>
  <span>don’t think I’m going to miss you. Bye bye!” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And suddenly they’re alone. The lights shut off, the only thing left illuminating the room is the red light that flashes on and off every few seconds, an alarm starts to blare  as a voice surrounds them.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  
  <em>
    <span>Area set to detonate in exactly three point five minutes. Please make your way to the nearest exit. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Crap!</span>
  </em>
  <span>” Sonic seethes through his teeth, “Shadow, you have to leave me here, I can’t walk, I’ll only slow you down.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Shut the hell up! I’m not letting you die here, or anywhere else. Now come on, we have to </span>
  <em>
    <span>move.</span>
  </em>
  <span>” He shouts, and grabs the boy who yelps in alarm. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And then he’s running as fast as he can go, heart slamming against his chest as he swerves around corners, the warning above their heads is blaring so loud he can barely think. He can feel both of their erratic breaths as he pushes his legs to </span>
  <em>
    <span>go go go! </span>
  </em>
  <span>The world flashes in and out, black, red, black, red. Each time his vision adjusts he’s a few feet ahead of where he was last, but he doesn’t know if it’s enough. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Two minutes remaining before detonation. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He’s not going to make it, Shadow thinks. They won’t make it out in time. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>One minute and thirty eight seconds. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He can feel a hand on his own, it’s not trembling, it’s steady. Fingers laced tightly against his own. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>One minute remaining. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It’s loud, but he can still breathe, there aren’t any screams, or gunshots. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Thirty seconds. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The click of heels against the floor, the twirl of a silky blue dress. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Fifteen seconds. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There’s a hand holding his own, and it’s not shaking. There’s almost calm radiating from the touch. The person attached to it is assured. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Ten seconds. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She’s smiling from where she’s slumped on her side, no matter how weak. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Five seconds. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Maria never gave up, he thinks as he runs. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Four seconds. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She’s gone, but she never truly left him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Three seconds. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And now there’s someone else holding his hand, but it’s different. And it’s scary, but it’s okay. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Two seconds. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There’s a boy in his arms who’s here right now, who needs him, who trusts him. Shadow doesn’t think he wants to see Maria just yet. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>One second. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He slams open a door, and light pours into his retinas and it burns, but that's good, because right now he’s still alive and he’s done everything he can do. He lands on his back in the warm earth skidding against it as dirt scrapes it’s way through his fur, but at least like this his friend will still be okay. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>That’s the last thought that enters his mind before the building they just barely escaped from explodes, when grass and wildflowers jump in the air and a loud audible </span>
  <em>
    <span>BOOM</span>
  </em>
  <span> fills his ear drums, and when he feels a pair of lips against his own. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He’s okay, </span>
  </em>
  <span>Shadow thinks. </span>
  <em>
    <span>We’re still okay. </span>
  </em>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hello friends! I am back- enjoy the 26 more minutes of 4/20 while it lasts. Hope you enjoyed this update, (we're coming pretty close to the end!) and as usual I hope ur staying safe and healthy!!</p>
<p>Farewell for now!!!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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